Hyperdimension Neptunia: Descent
by Symantra
Summary: A group declaring themselves as the "Planeptune Liberation Force" has made their move. Neptune becomes the center of attention for all of Gamindustri but not for an ideal reason. A laid-back life turns into a struggle to survive and keep a nation from falling apart. *Revision coming soon.*
1. Chapter 1: A Battle

A knock resounded through Planeptune's base of operations. The knock was not really that loud, but compared to the total silence that usually filled the lobby, it was impossible to miss. The Planeptune Basilicom staffman cast a glance toward the main door of the building.

"Now, who could that be?" He placed his book face down on the table and dropped his feet from the counter. The front door was rarely used for two reasons: one being that it was rare for anybody to have business at the Basilicom on weekends—or at all, really—and two being that everybody who did have something to do there usually entered through unconventional means.

"At least this one is kind enough to not break the door down just because," the Basilicom worker sighed. The last time someone had entered through the main door had also been the second time the main door had needed to be replaced. It was probably a better thing that Planeptune's frequent visitors teleported or flew in through the window of the CPU's room. That way, they would save money on repairs.

Just as he stepped out from behind his desk, one of the huge double doors slowly opened inwards, letting sunlight into the lobby. At the very bottom—looking very well like Jack sneaking into the giant's dining room—was a visitor who, in themselves, was a rare sight.

"H-hello," the deity stared at him. "I, uh... Forget that I knocked. As a CPU, I have the right to go where I please. So, if you would excuse me."

It was not the friendliest greeting, but the CPU hardly sounded impertinent. On top of that, although he did not dare to say it aloud, the goddess of Lastation had a reputation for saying harsh words in a kind voice.

"Lady Black Heart, it is a pleasure," he bowed to her. Even though he was the receptionist, there were not many times when a formal reception was necessary. Nonetheless, his movements and speech flowed naturally. "What brings you here today?"

The CPU stalked down the center of the great hall, the sound of her shoes against the ground ringing out sharply in the still air. "What brings me here?" she repeated in an uninterested voice. She nodded at the Basilicom worker as she passed. "Nothing to be concerned about. You can go back to your book."

As the Lady stalked past him, he could not resist a small smile. While she was trying to seem strict and imperious, the cordial nod undid the effect. And alas, the voice was no less polite than before. "Certainly. I hope you find what you need," he said, and sat back down as she kept walking without even bothering to respond.

Once the sound of her foot steps had faded, he picked up his book and scanned the page to find where he had left off. Removing his bookmark, he started to read: "Without announcing her presence or even knocking, she turned the handle and threw the door wide open..."

 _ **Descent**_

Navigating the hallways was not a problem, since Noire had been to this Basilicom on numerous other occasions—not the mention, the four nations' keystone buildings were widely similar in layout and design. The only differences between the Basilicoms of Lastation and Planeptune were the appearance and location. In under a minute, she had found her destination. Without announcing her presence or even knocking, she turned the handle and threw the door wide open. She opened her mouth to call out, but someone beat her to it.

"Oh, Noire. Could you get the front door? I heard a knock earlier, and I'm not sure if the guy in the lobby got it. But you're here, so that works perfectly!" For whatever reason, she was welcomed as if her being in Planeptune was a given at any time. "It was probably just another side character or OC, but I want to make sure it's not somebody important," Neptune continued, like it was completely natural for Noire to burst into her room without any prior warning.

"That was me, you dolt." Noire shook her head and grumbled, striding into the room and heading straight for her purple counterpart. She grabbed Neptune by the wrist, slapping the controller out of her hand and yanking the girl to her feet. "Come on, let's go. I can't believe you!"

"Really? You actually use the door? Nobody ever uses that thing... Everybody just comes in through the balcony!" Neptune ignored both the interruption of her game and the arguably rude treatment.

"From what I hear, Blanc has broken down your front door a couple of times. It wouldn't kill you to pay more attention to what goes on inside your own house." If it had not been obvious that Noire was in no mood to deal with Neptune's infamous personality, her voice continued to rise. "Seriously, Neptune?! Do you have bad hearing or something? Or do you just ignore what comes in through your communications device?"

As if the situation was finally becoming apparent, the purple-haired girl's voice took on a note of concern. "Huh? What's wrong? Did something happen?" Noire just growled, getting even more frustrated as she dragged Neptune along behind her.

"Stupid, brainless idiot... You just realized?" Marching her objective back into the great hall, she looked at the receptionist, who was watching with wide eyes and an arched brow. Absently, she made a note to cut back on the verbal abuse. It would not do to start swearing like a certain other individual she could name. "Sorry, but your Lady Purple Heart has to take responsibility for cleaning up her own city. I'll bring her back tomorrow, so don't worry about it. If funeral invitations needed to be sent out, you'd have already gotten one."

Not bothering to assess the man's reaction to her grave joke, she kicked open the double doors and thrust the startled CPU outside. "Transform. Now!" she glared, hoping that intimidation would spur the girl into action. It would be much easier to work with the other version of Neptune. Either way, they would need flight to reach their goal in time. Wide eyed and looking a tad bit alarmed, Neptune nodded and began to initiate her Hard Drive Divinity. When the beam of light faded, Purple Heart wasted no time in hovering skywards.

"Where are we headed?"

Having just completed her own transformation, Black Heart grabbed the other CPU by the forearm and took off, the both of them shooting into the sky at a remarkable speed. Once they had cleared the ground and adjusted their direction, she let go and glared at the figure gliding alongside her. "I swear, you are the most insufferable..." She did not finish, as Purple Heart's eyes had already alighted on their destination; thankfully, the commute time had been nearly zero. A battle of relatively large proportions had erupted in the streets of Planeptune, so close to the Basilicom it could be considered in Neptune's front yard.

Drawing her two-handed sword, Purple Heart landed in the middle of a group of people, yelling a fierce cry as she swung the blade in a circle around her. Everything within a meter's radius was cut down, and she took off running almost immediately. "White Heart! IF!" she called out to her allies as she neared them. "What's going on? Why are you two here?"

"What the hell do you think we're doing here? We're fighting your war for you, dumbass!" White Heart turned to face Purple Heart, and she looked just about ready to swing at the nearing goddess. "What took you so long, you get lost on the way from your bed to the front door?"

"Their numbers are higher than usual!" She ignored the venomous words. "How long have you been in combat?"

"Oh, we just started. I wouldn't even be here if I hadn't gotten a call from your buddy over there, saying that these losers were running rampant through the streets of your stupid, convoluted urban city!"

Black Heart steamed from the sarcastic usage of the term "buddy", but she did not rise to the taunt. Drawing her sword from thin air, she turned and slammed it into the unprotected side of the closest enemy. Before he realized he was even dead, she had found a new target. She opened her mouth to retort, but someone beat her to the punch once again. That was probably a good thing, considering which cocky, overpowered goddess she had been about to yell at.

"Save it for later! Let's hurry up and finish this battle before you start attacking each other." Not to be forgotten, IF chipped in with her dialogue for the scene. "We've almost got them, so let's try not to hit each other in our confusion, yeah?"

"Little brat..." White Heart glared daggers at IF, who suddenly looked very small in the proximity of the hammer-wielding deity. "Fine! You better move to the other side of the battlefield before you get caught up in my AoE, because I won't pay for your hospital bill!"

Doing as told, IF sprinted away and to the side of the recent arrival. "Purple Heart, let's go!"

"Right!" Pivoting on her heel, Purple Heart span one hundred and eighty degrees to match the scout's charge. The duo struck with the force of a hurricane, sweeping away the enemy's ranks.

Black Heart's eyes narrowed as she held off an attacker wielding a dull iron greatsword. "What happened to the guards who were on duty?!" she shouted, using the opportunity to dash forwards and slam into her opponent to knock him off balance. Before she could drive the tip of her blade into his chest, a war cry sounded directly behind her followed by flash of white and blue in the corner of her eye sent her dropping to the ground. Directly overhead, the air whistled as her backup—but not necessarily her savior—pulled back from a gigantic swing of her hammer. The man she had been about to finish was sent crashing into his allies; should she herself have reacted too late...

"They're useless! All of them!" White Heart bellowed with no attempt to control her anger. To put it plainly, she was beyond the point of giving a fuck. "Whoever trains those morons really needs to do a better job! Can't depend on NPCs for anything!"

Biting back a reply, Black Heart resigned herself to the battle, defeating the enemy with lightning speed. She downed one after the other, finding another opponent only seconds after the last fell to their knees. As the fight went on, her grip on the sword tightened and she gritted her teeth. None of the enemies were dangerous in any way, even when she was outnumbered double or triple. Still, compensating for the sheer numbers was starting to take a toll on her endurance stat. While all the fighters of the opposing faction went down after taking a hit or two, they constantly tried to surround her and strike where she was not looking. Their levels were low as usual: a wave of weak enemies, whose purpose was not to do battle with goddesses but to cause trouble for civilians. Their weapons and skill were reflective of this fact.

Eventually, the enemy began to fall back. They hesitated upon seeing their comrades fall easily to the triforce of goddesses and the fierce guild member. Only three results would come out of staying longer: a swift death, a crushing defeat, or an impossible fight against a whirlwind of three blades. The quartet let out a synchronized battlecry, and two bodies flew above the heads of the soldiers to hit the ground far past the back lines. Panic for the rebel army reached the breaking point. Those who had not already fallen started to back up, before losing all nerve and running with all possible speed in the opposite direction. Any who fell behind in the retreat or tried to make a heroic stand did not escape with their lives.

With their enemy's tails between their legs, Purple Heart straightened from her fighting stance and watched the last of the enemy disappear down the city's branching streets and alleyways. It would be preferable to send out a clean-up crew to hunt the rest down, but that was not currently an option. Sensing that the retreat did not mean the danger had passed, she tightened her grip on her sword as someone stomped toward her, brandishing an uncomfortably large weapon.

"Alright you bitch. You have a minute, no, half a minute to explain before I kill you too," threatened White Heart. Her approach stopped only once she was standing face to face with the other goddess.

Normally, the end of the battle also meant the deactivation of the CPUs' powered-up forms, but that was not a logical option when the goddess of Lowee, quaking in rage, still had her finger on the trigger. Well, on the handle—her hammer was, at that moment, far more threatening than any firearm could ever be. Lowee's divine protector looked as if she was going to start another war.

"I didn't know this was happening. My comms link is under maintenance," Purple Heart defended herself, subtly taking a defensive stance. "I apologize, but I—"

"Apologize to my ass. You owe me, big time," the rival CPU spat and turned away. With that, her hammer fragmented into a hundred shards of light, and the owner shot into the sky, leaving behind only a streak of color and that seething farewell.

"She doesn't have to be so rude about it," Neptune sighed as the light enveloping her body dissipated. "Maybe it's her one-in-thirty day," she muttered, regardless of the fact that she knew otherwise. Goddesses could shelve their human inconveniences, and both she and Noire were aware of that.

"Maybe you've forgotten whose fault this is in the first place?" Noire had also returned to her human form. While her HDD personality was no longer telling her to literally pick a fight with Neptune, she was still irritated. "You're the reason that these people are rebelling in the first place!"

"W-wait, why is this all my fault?" the smaller girl complained, backing up two steps as Noire poked a finger at her.

IF cut in, saving Neptune from the list of accusations that was about to come. "Hey, come on! Let's just go back to the Basilicom," she pleaded. Two pairs of eyes, one narrowed and one widened, found her.

"Fine."

"Okay."

The brunette sighed through clenched teeth. Leading the way, she walked ahead of the two, unwittingly leaving her friend up to Noire's mercy.

 _ **Descent**_

Neptune made no effort to keep quiet; the noise from the Basilicom's kitchen traveled all throughout the building. She dropped a tray onto the counter before pulling open the cupboard and searching through them with no particular objective. Bags of chips, cookies, candies, and other sweets and junk food were tossed indiscriminately over her shoulder, some landing on the counter and the others hitting the ground. When she was done raiding the pantry, the doors closed and she turned around again, fixing the pile of snacks with an undeserved glare.

"Really! I don't mind being sent to get food, but she was so rude about it," she complained to the box of biscuits on the table. The box did not respond, something she was thankful for. If the biscuits had indeed responded, then it would mean one of two things: She was crazy, or Nepgear had brought the wrong brand again. "It's not like this is my house or anything... It's not like they're my guests or anything. The host should get some respect, don't you think so?"

Muttering angrily to herself, she walked to the refrigerator and yanked it open. Her hand automatically moved toward the third shelf from the bottom, which contained literally nothing but a multi-colored selection of pudding. Call it an unhealthy obsession, but dessert had been part of her diet ever since she had met Compa. Being immortal did have its perks, and automatically perfect health was one of them. She picked a yellow cup from the shelf, then grabbed three more and placed them in the crook of her arm. After a moment's consideration, she grabbed one more before nudging the fridge closed with her foot.

In an April Fool's entry written by Adell Christine, several requirements for life were listed: one, the pudding shelf was stocked; two, the reserve pudding supply in the back of the fridge was stocked; and three, it was accessible within twenty-four hours of the last visit. To Ms. Christine's surprise, she hit the Nep on the head with her satirical guide to happiness.

One of Neptune's quirks was her behavior when no one else was around. This also applied when she thought she was alone, but every now and then someone would spy on her from the shadows, sometimes for shocking results. Of course, when she was happy she was not unlike a ball of fluff. Her every action would be imbued with cheer—or, to quote the words of a certain CPU, she was "almost sickening and oh-so disturbing". On the other hand, it was difficult to recognize the CPU of Planeptune when she was in a bad mood. During her rare moments of anger, which were rarer than getting a glass shoe from a flaming boar, any unfortunate inanimate objects in her vicinity were completely at her disposal. In those times, she resembled Blanc more than anyone else.

Neptune placed her own share next to everything else she had retrieved from the kitchen. Oddly enough, the items that had been strewn across the counter and the floor were now stacked atop the tray in a neat mound.

"Huh... That's weird." She shifted her jaw and frowned. A smile lit up her face and she scanned the room. "Hello? Is anyone out of the ordinary there?" she called, but nobody came forth. With a shrug, she picked up the tray and walked to the door. "Maybe Nep Jr. brought some sort of cat or spirit thing back with her from that one quest she did in Lowee."

Once the CPU had left the room, the mysterious snack-moving force made a reappearance. An out-of-the-ordinary book slid off of the shelf and fell to the ground, landing on its spine with a thud. It opened right down the middle, revealing a miniature person sitting between the book's pages.

"Ouch!" Histoire winced as she picked herself up off the ground—well, her tome picked her up, but details, details. The fall had not hurt her as much as the last time, but she rubbed her head as she floated into the kitchen to look for any left-behind items. "At least she did not drop anything on her way out... Having to clean up after her is rather tedious. **(* T T)** "

She sighed as she hovered lower, eventually coming to a rest on the surface of the counter. "I wonder what is on her mind this time. That makes the second time this week..." Histoire sighed again, resting her face in her hands. Taking care of the nation in the CPU's stead had been her job from the very beginning, and her workload had only increased with the recent uprising. Between managing political affairs and Neptune, however, it was the latter that she had started to devote more of her attention to. It took a great deal to push Neptune to her breaking point, yet this amount seemed to be getting smaller and smaller over the last couple of days.

Shaking her head, Histoire and her book rose steadily off the counter and in the direction of the door. Closing her eyes, she made a quick prayer for the safety of the nation and the CPU before disappearing down the hall to return to her office.

 _ **Descent**_

The door to the room was not closed, so Neptune walked right on in. She set the tray down on the center table, where her two guests conversed in low tones. Without words, she grabbed her share—all five pudding cups—and sat down on her bed. Noticing her arrival, IF looked at her and smiled.

"Thanks," she said, and Neptune nodded and opened the first of her five snacks. She did not offer to share, nor did she bother to respond before she started to eat.

"What's up with you?" Noire was, as usual, blunt in her questioning. "You're awfully quiet." IF almost winced at the total lack of subtlety, but she would be lying if she claimed not to have taken notice to her friend's odd lack of commentary.

"Oh, am I? Sorry, I must be hungry. You know me: food first, friends later!" The purple-haired girl answered, folding her legs with a wry grin. Her expression did not last long under the withering gaze of the visiting CPU.

"Right now, your nation is in civil war." The words were accompanied by a glare. "You're a goddess; the last things that should be on your mind are eating and socializing. On that note, don't expect me to treat you like a friend if all you plan to do is let me handle all the work. You're lucky I didn't just storm off like Blanc did, and heck! Vert didn't even show up!"

Neptune frowned, a spoon of caramelized sugar stopping just before her lips. IF could practically see the gears turning above her head. Considering the fact that the others had nothing to gain by coming to her aid, she was lucky to have even one out of three taking her side. Still, even after facing ASIC together, it was rather distressing that Noire was the only one to grace Planeptune with her presence—and grudgingly, at that. Unfortunately, that was just the way it was: Unless all of Gamindustri was at risk, it would be unlikely for the goddesses to form a team just to stomp out some riots.

"I guess you're right," Neptune shrugged after gulping down a spoonful of pudding.

Noire watched her for a moment longer before letting up. She looked away and sighed, "Of course. You're still Neptune, and I'm still Noire. That won't change, even if you end up losing your whole nation."

The black-haired goddess turned back to the person sitting across from her. IF met her eyes, and they came to a wordless agreement: Neptune was acting no differently than she always did.

"Alright. Let's get down to business," the guild member said, reaching out to grab her favorite cookies from the tray. She did not know if Neptune had intentionally picked them out for her, or if it was simply a coincidence, but she mentally thanked the girl again. "These guys won't defeat themselves. And judging from the way the guards were overwhelmed so easily today, we can't just leave this on auto battle and wait for it to go away on its own."

So began a heated talk about tactics and strategy. As IF and Noire forged ahead, Neptune found that she was nearing the end of her fourth serving of pudding. She set the empty container down next to the others, already reaching for the last—

"Oh, for crying out loud!" Noire's exclamation caused her to jump. "Just stop eating already! Why do you even have so many of those things?" she let out an unintelligible groan. "Can you at least participate? It's not like we're trying to save you from meeting with a terrible fate, you know?"

Neptune smiled, but hastily flipped her expression when she received the disapproving gazes of the two other girls in the room. She sighed, "Okay, I get it. Time to get serious." After clearing her throat, she made her first contribution—if it could really be called one—to the discussion. "First of all, what guards were you talking about earlier? I didn't think we had any on duty or anything. Doesn't it take, like, time and resources to train troops?"

Seeing Noire get ready to respond with a deragotory remark, IF jumped in and answered the question. "There isn't actually an armed guard here in Planeptune, so Histoire hired them from somewhere. She dispatched them to patrol the cities, but they were overnumbered so quickly by the group we fought earlier that I think it's safe to say they won't be of much use."

"Okay, then... What do we know about the rebels? I mean, I know that they want to get rid of me and all," she added after being pinned with an angry look from Lastation's representative. "But, do we know anything about their leader or what?"

"We just covered that, but you weren't listening, so allow me to enlighten you," Noire muttered. "As far as originality goes, these guys don't score too high. They're pretty much just calling themselves the Anti-Neptune Group, and they're led by someone who is sick and tired of a certain CPU who doesn't care about her nation. We don't know whether they're important or just some random hater, and we don't even know if they do have a leader. It could just be a mob of people who want to replace you with someone who understands the concept of responsibility."

Under the onslaught of jabs at her usage of authority, Neptune averted her eyes. It was a little unfair to judge her so harshly, but at the same time rumors and lies can grow from a single truth. Compared to the other CPUs, and even the Candidates, she was in first place for laziness and utter avoidance of anything political. On numerous occasions, she had been compared to the other two Planeptune officials, Histoire or Nepgear; on all of those occasions, it had been agreed upon that either would be a better choice as CPU. However, fierce debates still raged about who would fill the vacancies left by promoting one of the two. Almost everybody seemed to agree that Neptune should not be the one to fill the positions.

Neptune put a hand on the back of her head and smoothed her hair. "But how did they get so many shares? Even if I'm lazy and I don't do much, nobody has tried to actually get rid of me before. A lot of people still appreciate me, right?"

Now, it was IF's turn to speak up. Information was floating on the forefront of her mind, ready to be freed. She did so eagerly, wiping away the crumbs on her lips before leaping into her explanation. "The Anti-Nep Force is a group of radicals. Do you remember the Mazens, who were responsible for the Jellycause?" Neptune nodded. The Jellycause, which had happened several centuries ago, was a tragic event remembered by Dogoos and their relatives everywhere; it had been led by the Mazens, who had received almost 30% of the global shares before they had been eliminated by Lastation's special operatives team. "Basically, radicals take advantage of political crises to usurp the current leaders. Planeptune's shares have been decreasing over time, even before this whole issue with the ANF. People who are starting to lose faith in the official government—that's you—turn to them because they offer salvation and hope. No matter how outrageous their cause may be from an objective view, citizens who have everything to lose place their faith in the group that promises good times and a better future. Then, it feels like they have nothing to lose, so they can trick themselves into believing that they're fighting for a good cause."

Neptune looked hard pressed to absorb all of the information within the wall of text, but she shook her head and listened, narrowing her eyes in determination. Politics and strategy were her two worst fields, but that did not stop her from doing her best to understand the situation. Most of it was probably lost on her, but she did get the gist of it: grade A for effort.

IF continued talking at a fast pace. She did not notice the high mental strain she was inflicting on the girl, which was quite inconsiderate, but to be fair there were many other matters that required tending to. While getting the CPU of Planeptune caught up with the current affairs was one of the more important things to do, she wanted to get as much done as fast as possible. "Histoire is doing her best to keep shares from dropping any further, but she and Nepgear can only do so much. At some point, things begin to fall apart; we might reach that point soon. So right now, we need to figure out what the best plan of action is. These are the only things I've thought of so far, but I figure there are three things we can focus on right now. Our choices are to get rid of the rebels completely, discourage people from joining them, or try and win back some of your shares."

"Hold on!" Noire interrupted the explanation. IF had been about to launch into an in-depth explanation, but she decided to allow the goddess to speak first. Plus, she had already given Neptune a lot of things to process; it might be better to give her time instead of more info. "Even if we raise shares back up, we still haven't solved the biggest part of the problem. After all, the problem isn't just that Planeptune is losing shares, it's that Neptune is losing popularity. Nobody likes her."

The last three words were unnecessary, and Neptune seemed to agree. A cry of protest sprang to her lips, "Hey, that isn't true! These guys are just trending right now! Eventually, people will see that whatever they're saying is just a buncha BS!"

"And that's exactly the kind of thinking that landed you into this mess in the first place," countered Noire. Neptune fell silent. "Just face it: you're worthless. At least, that's what your people think of you. You need to step up your game before they make you step down." Noire let her words sink in for a second. Just when she appeared to be done, she locked eyes with the other CPU. "And to be totally honest with you, I'm with them on this one. I'll even use force if I have to; if you aren't going to use your power responsibly, then you should just give up your standing as a Console Patron Unit."

A chill ran down IF's spine and she reacted instantly, spluttering on her snack until she was able to force it down without choking. She leaned across the table and shouted at a whisper volume, "Lady Noire! That was a bit much, don't you think?"

"Whatever. It's all true," came the response in a normal, very much audible tone. It appeared that Noire was making no attempt to soft-pedal her thoughts of Neptune; the challenge had been issued. IF's shoulders were shaking, and though she forced herself to sit back in her seat, she could not relax. She peeked at the person sitting only a short distance away from her, whose presence should not have borne witness to such harsh words.

They both waited for Neptune to say something, albeit with different expectations. IF looked over at the CPU sitting across from her, who did not look apologetic in the slightest—rather, she looked cold and calculating, with a glint in her eye as if this had been her intent from the very beginning. She looked away and turned her attention back to the girl on the bed. While she was not beaming at this particular moment, IF could not tell if she was even affected by the criticism: Her face was the same unreadable slate as always.

Silence reigned for an eternity.

After an indeterminable period of time had passed, Neptune unfroze. An empty cup fell to the floor as she shifted on top of the bedsheets, pulling her feet up and hugging her knees to her chest. She dropped her chin in her arms and pushed out her bottom lip ever so slightly. "Yeah, yeah, I know. There's no need to tell me again."

"N-Neptune..." Galvanized by some feeling she could not describe, IF stumbled to her feet, knocking against the table in the process. Neither CPU paid her any mind, so she sat back down after a few awkward seconds.

Noire spoke up again, and her voice still held an edge. "Then go outside. Accept some quests, help some people, do some work for once! Show them that you at least have the decency to try and shape up, and maybe you'll regain some of your followers." Noire pointed at the door, directing Neptune on where she needed to go next. Her words were harsh, and her eyes unforgiving, but some of the animosity left her body as the girl walked slowly past her. "Hey... Neptune."

There was a brief pause before Neptune turned around. "Yeah? What's up?" she asked casually. If someone were to walk into the room at that very instant, they would not have noticed anything to be unusual. Noire looked her in the eye, holding eye contact until she had finished what she needed to say.

"When you're done... come over to Lastation. You and I have some things to discuss, and I... I think you need to take a break," she said. Turning away as if suddenly disinterested, she closed her eyes and tapped her foot as she waited for Neptune to leave.

When Noire opened her eyes again, she was met with the eyes of the brown-haired girl still sitting at the table. IF stared at her, and she stared back, but the contest had been decided as soon as it had started. The goddess gave up, cursed at nobody in particular, then turned her back on the brunette. "What!" she fumed before storming out of the room.

IF watched her go. She knew that it was highly unlikely that the twin-tailed goddess would follow Neptune, but after that... highly interesting... display, her curiosity had been piqued.

"Hm." She was the only one left in the otherwise empty room. On the table, the mountain of snacks remained, barely touched. There was a single uneaten cup of pudding on the bed. She thought about it for a moment, then she walked over and picked it up. The lid was decorated with the logo of a well-known confectionery. "I... may as well eat this. I mean, Neptune left it behind, so there's no point in letting it go to waste."


	2. Chapter 2: Assassin

Neptune knocked on the door of the Basilicom with more force than she normally used. For some reason, Lastation must have thicker walls than Planeptune. Numerous times before, she had arrived and knocked, yelled, and even hit the door, but Noire always answered minutes later and claimed that she had not heard.

On one particular visit, Neptune had snuck inside and attempted to infiltrate the CPU's room, but that door had been barred, locked, and bolted shut. When it finally opened after a couple minutes—Uni and Kei passed her in that time, and she waved at them—Noire had given her a look and kicked her out of the building entirely.

"If she doesn't respond, does that mean she's taking a nap again?" Neptune wondered to herself before sighing and propping herself up against the door. Usually, Noire excused herself by saying that she had been sleeping; it almost made sense, considering how she worked herself to the bone on a daily basis. Almost.

However, Noire herself had told Neptune to come to Lastation, so she would not have forgotten and dozed off in the meantime. The goddess of Lastation was not absentminded. She was insincere and boastful, but in no way was she a scatterbrain. There was a limit to how many categories one can fill before becoming a walking stereotype.

Of course, as the confident and stunning main character, Neptune could afford to step up the the plate and hit the ball however she saw fit. That did not mean she was planning to start copying the way Noire behaved—face it, Noire was a jerk at the best of times—but it did mean that the majority of her actions would be widely accepted. She was never one to enjoy tragic backstories or life-changing developments, so she always got straight to the point.

In the last couple of hours, Neptune had accepted and completed all of the available quests in the guild. After that, she did it again. Then, she made a special request to see if there were any hidden or dangerous quests that were not made public. Of course, she had been transformed into Purple Heart, because none of her efforts would have had any effect should she have stayed in her human form. If she had to thank her down-to-earth HDD self for something other than the awesome abilities, it would be her idea to refuse the quest reward: She had said, as Purple Heart, that she was "only doing what was necessary to save Planeptune".

Her appearance at the guild had stirred up quite a commotion among her supporters and dissenters alike. The words spoken by Purple Heart impressed some of those who doubted her, but only some. Where she went, dubious looks and subdued murmurs still followed. Thankfully, her human form was little known in Lastation, and nobody was going to bother her here anyway.

When Noire finally appeared, it was not from within the Basilicom as expected. Neptune stopped practicing her dance routine—she worked on it occasionally, but only when she had spare time—and watched the black-haired CPU approach. In her hands were two shopping bags, and a pair of red glasses adorned her face.

"Oh, Neptune." Noire slowed as she neared. "I didn't expect you to be here early," she said, squinting at the girl through the fake lenses.

"You told me to come here! I didn't expect you to be here in full disguise mode." Hands on her hips, she stood between the CPU and the door. Grinning, she asked, "Did you forget about our date?" The question got half of the reaction that Neptune had been aiming for.

Noire dropped one of the bags she was holding, but she hurriedly picked it up before any of its contents could fall out.

"Date? What the hell, Neptune?" She let out a clipped sigh and pushed past her friend. Gingerly putting one of the bags down, she started to unlock the door after fumbling with a pouch at her hip. "You're an idiot. Remind me why I invited you here."

Instead of responding, Neptune snuck up behind the girl and peered into the bag. The top was stuffed with packaging paper, and she was caught before she could lift the layers of paper to see what was inside. "Don't touch that!" Noire glared at her. The door clicked and opened, and she entered the building after snatching the bag away from Neptune. With a giggle, the purple CPU followed her inside. "Really, why are you here so early? Did you even do anything, or did you just slack off and come here?"

"I did some quests... all of the ones that were available, at least," Neptune told her. While she trailed behind Noire, the easygoing smile left her face. "You said you needed to talk to me. You sounded really serious, so..." Her voice was, in fact, serious. Noire looked over her shoulder and frowned when she saw the smile-less face of her friend.

"Huh? Why are you getting all depressed now? It's not like I invited you here so you could be my punching bag," she shook her head as she led the way into the building. "If you had been this serious earlier, we might have actually gotten somewhere during the meeting." Nodding at the person sitting at the desk, she led the way into the living quarters of the Basilicom. A couple seconds passed without either girl saying anything, prompting Noire to look back at Neptune once more. "You really are a pain, you know? If only you weren't so lazy, things never would have gotten to this point."

Again, the girl did not respond. She did not say anything until they reached the central room, and Noire stopped walking. Putting her bags down against the wall, she crossed her arms and faced Neptune. "Can you, like, complain or something? At least argue with me here. It's frustrating enough to have to deal with all of this rebellion business; don't go out of character on me."

Meeting her gaze, Neptune managed half of a smile. "Well... I don't really have room to complain, do I?" she looked to Noire for confirmation. The CPU was a little taken aback by her response, so she started to explain. "It is my fault after all, so—"

"Hey, what did I tell you about being out of character?" interrupted Noire after recovering from her brief moment of shock. She picked up her shopping bags and turned away. "It's bothering me. I'll kick you out if I have to. Leave it for when you transform, watching you be serious in this form makes me want to be sick."

She told Neptune to stay put and walked off without saying what she was doing. Left to her own devices, Neptune stared at the spot where Noire had been before dropping onto the couch in the center of the room, where she sprawled out and let her legs dangle off of the armrest.

She did not believe she was being too serious. Did the CPU not threaten to kill her, or at least beat her up until she resigned, only a few hours before? With the vibe that Noire had given off at the time, Neptune figured it would be best to play it safe and lay off on the jokes. She could not afford to lose the support of her friend and only other ally in this war.

However, her ally had become nearly unapproachable ever since their encounter half a day ago. Noire was telling her to be herself, but her personality was exactly the thing that had aggravated Noire earlier. The complete turnaround left her discombobulated; it was partly her job to break the tension during important cutscenes, but she was not sure if that was a good idea in this situation. She had no qualms about having a reputation as a jokester and "that one girl", but there was one thing about these events that made her waver.

Nepgear and Histoire were working hard to make up for all of the jobs she shafted in favor of having fun, and IF and Noire were willingly trying to help her out of the pitfall she had dug for herself—the key word was willingly. If she did nothing but shoot the breeze while they put so much effort in for her sake, would that not be going beyond the point of being laid back and to the point of being inconsiderate? However much her devil-may-care attitude disputed the fact, she was still a CPU. She shirked her duties on a daily basis, but she still had some guilt over forcing them onto other people.

The other CPU had re-entered the room, but Neptune did not realize this until a bundle of something was dropped over the top of the sofa, landing on her stomach. "We're going outside. Get dressed," Noire's voice commanded. Picking up the thing that had been tossed to her, she sat up and looked at Noire.

"You're making me dress up?" she asked incredulously. She had a mixed opinion about this turn of events; at least she was not being used as a punching bag. "The reason you called me here is to use me as one of your cosplay tools?"

Noire moved about the room, fixing some objects that were apparently out of place. "What are you talking about? We're going to do some quests. While you're here, I may as well have you do something productive." Neptune looked again at the clothes she was holding.

"Why do I have to wear this?" she asked. Her answer came in the form of a cocked eyebrow and a great deal of sarcasm.

"So I don't tell you to go home. How's that?"

 _ **Descent**_

The girl seemed to have returned to normal after putting on the clothing that she had been issued. Rather than acting all solemn and serious, she was now peppering Noire with annoying questions. Still, it was not as frustrating as dealing with depressed Neptune; she was decently experienced at dealing with Neptune when she was acting normally.

"How do I look, Nowa?" the girl winked and spun on her heel. Noire eyed her disdainfully, taking in the new outfit that had replaced the white hoodie with purple and blue streaks.

"Not that great," she said. "They say it's hard to go wrong with black, and I didn't think there would be any exceptions, but..." She let her voice trail away, leaving Neptune adrift on the issue of the costume she had donned.

"Well, that's not fair. Here I am, vying for your attention, even going as far as to wear the same skimpy outfit as you!" she whined, nearly falling over as she walked backwards to face Noire while she was talking. Since the roads in Lastation were paved and mostly clear of obstacles, it could only be blamed on her own clumsiness. The black-haired girl decided to ignore the jab at her trademark fashion choice.

Struggling to counter all of Neptune's comments with one of her own, Noire breathed out in relief when they reached the sector where they had been instructed to go. Among fighting bosses and risky foes, dealing with Neptune was a rightful chore. Engaging in a battle of wits with her purple counterpart was far more exhausting than any other battle she had been in.

Once they were in the field, however, all of Neptune's ditziness evaporated. Now, she was in perfect control of her body and blade. Even a fool like Neptune could pick up a weapon and start swinging it, Noire supposed; as a goddess, she just did it better than most.

This area was filled with rogue AIs and rampant robots that were said to have been abandoned while there was still power inside them. Apparently, they had found a way to generate more power by setting up drill rigs and harvesting natural resources, but the main concern was that they were becoming territorial and hostile to travelers. Their job was to lower the robots' numbers so that the excavation sites would be vulnerable for Lastation's task force to seize. A group of robots was within sight now, and Noire drew her sword from thin air. There looked to be about four of them: just a patrol.

"Go around to the other side," she ordered. "Start attacking the ones closest to you, and I'll join in from here." Neptune gave her a cheeky salute before running off. Even though she acted with her tongue in cheek, she did not seem to resent being ordered around. That was all well and good, as being the party leader was always a bolster for her pride.

When she heard Neptune engage in combat, she lifted her weapon and followed suit. Running toward the group of robots, she swerved to her right and swung at the first one to come within her reach. Her attack scored a hit on the robot's metallic body, and sparks flew from the cut regardless of the fact that there were no visibly severed wires. Since she had not hit a vital spot, her enemy began turning to attack her, but she aimed for the same spot and struck again. Though her blade sliced deeper than it had before, it got stuck before it had cleaved through the entire automaton. She yanked it out and backstepped to avoid a swinging arm from one of the other machines; her element of surprise had been lost, and there was not even a single broken robot to show for it. At most, she had damaged it enough so that it was no longer an active threat.

Just after she finished her target off with her third and final blow, there was a yell from across the battlefield. At the same time, purple light flooded her vision and a beam of the same color cut horizontally through the line of robots. Needless to say, they crumpled under the impact.

Noire looked at the newly formed junkheap, then the sword wielder responsible. Neptune waved.

"What, not gonna compliment me?" the girl pouted as she bounded up to Noire. "That was a new skill and everything! I sort of one-shot all of them, if you didn't notice."

Noire had no choice but to acknowledge the feat lest her friend jump to the conclusion that she was annoyed. "Yeah, I noticed. Total waste of SP, but good job," she shrugged. Neptune looked more than a little shocked by this answer.

"Total waste? You know what they say: 'waste not, want not' when it comes down to it!" Neptune crossed her arms and made a smug sound. Noire resisted the temptation to sit down and see to the headache she was starting to develop.

"I hope you realize that you just counteracted yourself."

She left it at that and walked away in search of more enemies. Behind her, she heard a gasp and rapid footsteps as her partner ran to catch up. "You're kidding, right? You at least know what I'm trying to say though, so that's fine. It doesn't matter if your vocabulary is a bit off, not when you've got a Nepedia right here—yours truly."

 _ **Descent**_

Noire had truly underestimated Neptune. She had incorrectly measured the efficiency that Planeptune's CPU possessed: considering how she claimed to have finished every available quest in Planeptune in a few hours...

"Fifty of 'CPR-V2', twenty of 'Prototype Appellation', twenty of 'TOH-85'..." she mumbled. The electronic screen she was reading off was a relatively new piece of tech that she herself had designed; it was eponymously named the GuildHub. It was a device meant to be station in the guild, obviously. It contained all sorts of sensors and detectors, allowing for a quest taker to keep track of their objective, completion, and alloted time, as well as ping for real-time information. This could all be done by accessing a pocket-sized device that could be linked to the GuildHub.

Excitement over her latest creation led her to release it as soon as she had completed it, which dated two days before planned. It had been installed into Lastation's guild hall on the day of, and her Oracle was currently negotiating to get it to the other three nations—for a price, of course. Noire now wondered if the preemptive publicization was a bad idea, because it seemed that she had not ironed out all of the bugs. The statistics it was showing at the current moment were impossible... They must have been glitches.

"Hey, look! All of that in an hour!" Neptune said excitedly, pointing to the timer which read fifty-nine minutes and forty-eight seconds.

Noire saw Neptune's thin finger tap the numbers repeatedly. "Yeah... an hour," she nodded, still not fully comprehending the results.

A message popped up above the timer. Neptune seemed ecstatic. Noire, not so much; she had programmed the damn thing, after all. "Whoa, that's cool! There's even a scoring system? 'High score! Best clear time for hunt quest of this difficulty'," she read. "Wow, are we good or what? We smashed like, four hundred robots and beat the last person by a long shot!"

Noire was not sure if she could ever reclaim her spot as questing champion. Even though the quest completion was marked under her name, the victory was not truly hers; in essence, Neptune had just played on her save file and tripled her high score. To her, it was a crushing defeat to team up with the laziest person in all of Gamindustri and see productivity increase by tenfold.

"We don't have one of these in Planeptune!" Neptune chattered on, oblivious of the despair forming in her partner's heart. "Can we get one? Please? We'll pay you and everything. I'll even deduct it from my personal account if I need to! Oh, and I'll throw in some other things: pudding, some of my spare clothes, Nepgear if you want her..."

As much as Noire would have loved to take her up on the offer, Kei had already made plans to sell to Planeptune. "I don't want your sister."

"Wow. Ouch," Neptune winced. "Good thing she isn't here to hear you, I think that would've brought her to tears. She's really sensitive about that kind of thing, you know?"

Apparently, Neptune was one of those types to have talents in the places were they would least be used. How fitting it was for such a skilled individual to completely lack motivation. While Noire was the hardest worker in all of Gamindustri, Neptune was probably the most efficient. The irony made Noire want to throw up.

Noire heaved a sigh. "What I wouldn't give... I don't understand why you're so good at quests when you rarely do them anyways."

"It's all part of being in the main character slot. You had your chance," shrugged Neptune. Losing interest in the GuildHub screen, she walked over to a billboard and reached up to look through the many notes and assignments attached to it. "So, what now? Should we do some of these errand quests, or shall we slay some more things?"

Shaking her head, Noire gestured for the other girl to leave it. Working no longer appealed to her. "Let's go," she turned to leave. Neptune lingered at the board for a little while longer before exiting the building with Noire. The sun was starting to set, and the temperature had dropped with the oncoming of night. Although the guild had air conditioning, being outside at dusk had a different aura. It was not dark enough to warrant the street lamps turning on, but small groups of people clustered underneath the beacons, talking in tones that matched the atmosphere. Noire led her charge down one of Lastation's major roads.

"Where are we going?" asked Neptune, once again walking backwards. She was still wearing the costume that bore a resemblance to the Noire's own. The girl did not seem to care; Noire was not sure what to think of this fact.

"I figured I would take advantage of having you here to buy some groceries," she replied.

Neptune looked shocked by Noire's casual declaration. "Whoa, wait, what? Am I being used as a tool here? This isn't coming out of my pocket, is it?"

"Of course not. You're just going to carry some stuff for me, aren't you?" Noire smiled. Her companion did not disagree.

The store Noire had in mind was not far away. Then again, one could walk from one end of the city to the other in about fifteen to twenty minutes, so nothing was really far away. Lastation was under constant expansion: slow and steady progress that she found quite satisfying. Construction orders came to the Basilicom on a daily basis, a constant reminder that her nation was thriving.

The goddess was pulled from her pleasant thoughts by a voice that she found slightly less pleasant. "Hey, Noire! Do you always do the shopping?" asked Neptune. She seemed to be honestly curious, so there was no harm in answering truthfully.

"Well, yeah. Who else would do it if I decided I didn't want to?" Noire chuckled at the thought and image that came to mind. "Can you imagine Kei going grocery shopping, of all things?" Lastation's Oracle may be one of the sharpest minds in the business world, but when it came to the world outside of the Basilicom, she was severely lacking. While she could spot flaws in an argument as soon as she heard it, she could not discern between salt and sugar. She was also pathetically inept at navigating crowded areas, or anywhere besides her office anyway. Kei had her share of embarrassing stories when it came to her adventures outside of the Basilicom.

Neptune allowed herself a laugh as well. "Nope! I betcha she'd get lost on the way there," she giggled. Funnily enough, Kei had actually gotten lost once. As it turned out, Noire had to find her and bring her back home like a lost child. She was glad that Kei remembered to use her phone, or she would have been loitering all night at the store just down the street from the Basilicom.

Half a minute of walking later, Neptune put her hands together as if she had remembered something. "Hey, Noire!" she said. The bearer of the name looked at her and raised an eyebrow, prompting her to go on. "You have people working at the Basilicom, right?"

Noire nodded. The staff in her building did their job, but to be honest she was a little iffy about what she thought of them. They treated her with the same formality as every other, but there was something about them that made her uncomfortable. "What about them?"

"Well, don't they do all of the cooking?" the purple-haired girl asked. "Shouldn't that include shopping?"

Noire was not sure how things worked in Planeptune, but the staff at the Basilicom generally did not do anything beyond what was in their job description. They managed the front desk, handled public relations, and the like, but taking care of the living quarters was not one of their designated tasks. She explained all of this to Neptune, who seemed surprised.

"Really? For us, they do almost everything," she hummed. "I dunno though, it sort of seems like it's just one guy. Whenever I see him cooking or cleaning, he always says hi and starts talking to me. He's pretty nice!"

Noire was confident that she knew who took it upon themselves to do all of the housework in the Basilicom, but she blew out the side of her mouth and held her tongue. If she told Neptune, she would have to explain her reasoning, and she did not like feel like explaining the prospect of ulterior motives. "Aren't you lucky, having someone voluntarily do all of that for you."

Neptune beamed and nodded, not quite catching the sarcastic tone of the words. The conversation ended there as they had arrived at their destination. Pressing on a large bronze button that jutted out of the wall, Noire opened the glass sliding door to the place she visited at least twice a week. Neptune did not miss a beat and slipped inside ahead of the other girl.

A girl wearing a green t-shirt looked up and smiled as they entered; with the exception of her, the store was empty. "Whoa!" was Neptune's first reaction to seeing the interior of the building. The floor was a marble-white tile spotted with flecks of gray, and the walls were made up of the same metal that most of Lastation was built of, except they were painted light brown unlike the rest of the city. "Cool!" was her reaction to seeing the countless rows of storage boxes that filled the space. Along the walls were shelves stocked with even more items.

"Hey, don't run off. Come here, you'll get lost," Noire teased, holding out a hand like she was addressing a young child. Being considerably taller than the other girl, it was almost plausible. Neptune stopped in her tracks.

"Lost? I can see over the top of the boxes though," she pouted. "But, I'll take you up on that offer!" Not expecting Neptune to actually take her hand, Noire recoiled in surprise and pulled her hand free of the girl's grip with a small shriek.

"Hey! I was just joking! I don't want to hold hands with you!" Embarrassed, Noire curled her fingers into a fist and glared at her friend, who was beside herself with amused titters. "Whatever. You're going to be carrying things for me, right?" Neptune wrapped up her mocking and bounded over.

"A'right, a'right..."

Noire spent the next few minutes walking through the aisles, dropping items into a bag carried by her personal helper. She could get used to having Neptune around. It would be convenient to have a minion, and the girl was good company when she was not being insufferable.

Among the things Noire picked up were energy bars, coffee beans, instant noodles, and batteries. She tried to bring as little suspicion to the detail as possible, but her selection did not go unnoticed by Neptune.

"What's up with these? Pulling all-nighters or something?" she wondered, reaching into the bag and pulling out the coffee beans. "You could just get Nep Bull. That stuff keeps you energized all night and all day! Perfect for those nights when you—"

"Enough advertising your own products," Noire scoffed. The idea of relying on Neptune's brand of energy drink was not one that she liked. "I trust Lastation-made products more than you, anyway."

"Don't knock it 'till you try it," Neptune made one last attempt before giving up. Unfortunately, she still persisted in her questioning. "But still, what's up with this stuff? It's like you're preparing for a hardcore camping trip or something. You know, we have this beautiful mountain over in Plane—"

"I'm not going camping," she cut the girl off before she could spout any more Nep Bull. "I just like having these around."

Even though goddesses were not actually required to fuel their bodies through food, they had been human at the very start—having proper meals felt only natural. Due to her tendency to work nonstop for long periods of time, Noire had become partial to packing some sort of granola or energy bars with her. The batteries were for her portable heater, which she kept in her room to brew coffee, prepare noodles, and charge her heat pack. There were more conventional power sources, all of them more efficient, but she had held back from upgrading. Her portable heater had been with her for a long time, and it had seen a lot of things in this old world. She would be damned to say she had not grown attached to it.

Noire was very much like a camper in that way, even though she had never camped anywhere besides her desk in her room—having her prized possession be a battery-powered heater and a supply of coffee beans meant she was already half of the way there.

A couple minutes later, they left the store and brought their haul to the Basilicom. Noire carried a small cardboard box filled with produce and ingredients for the kitchen, and Neptune carried everything else. That included Noire's personal supplies, some junk food for Uni, and a package of a certain dessert that she had insisted on buying. When they got back, Neptune waited while the CPU organized everything into the kitchen. She watched in amusement as Noire stored objects on top of the stove—which was labeled, "Do not turn on!" for obvious reasons—and the cutting board, and anywhere else really. The only place that was not used for storage was the sink, because running water was something that everyone could use.

Once she was finished, Noire told her to follow once more. This time, she did not tell Neptune where they were going.

 _ **Descent**_

The streets of Lastation were unrecognizable to Neptune as she followed Noire. This was not a place she visited regularly, especially not after nightfall. She would have been lost if not for her guide. The black-haired CPU walked like she knew where she was going, so Neptune was not worried in the slightest. Still, she was rather curious. "How long are you gonna keep me waiting?" she asked again. This time, Noire actually answered her question instead of brushing it off.

"I was hoping we could go some place quiet." There was none of her usual bluster. "There are some things that I need to talk to you about." She did not look back at Neptune, so she did not see the smirk on the girl's face.

"Oh? What kind of things, Noire?" she sidled up to her taller friend and grinned. "Is this a confession? Have you fallen for me? Do tell."

Rather than reacting like someone who was blatantly guilty, Noire chuckled in response to the teasing. "Like it would be that sort of one-sided relationship. I'd probably fall in love with Blanc before I developed feelings for you."

Impressed, Neptune laughed in good humor. "Anyone could fall in love with Blanc. I have half a mind to go after her myself!"

The streets were virtually empty. A few people passed by every now and then, but it had grown dark and many of Lastation's citizens had returned to their homes. There was not much room for residential districts in the city, so to compensate Lastation had sprawling apartment complexes with low rental rates. This brought many job hunters to the city, and it was one of the main reasons for the ever booming industry.

Many of the windows on those towering apartments were lit from the inside. As they walked, Neptune looked up at them and at the rest of her surroundings. While Lastation could not hold a candle to Planeptune, it was by no means a boring city. There was a certain mood created by the radiant yellow orbs lining the streets, and the buildings that reached into the sky.

The girl's internal monologue was nipped in the bud. Noire looked over her shoulder at the girl following her. "Neptune," she started. The aforementioned CPU tilted her head in lieu of a verbal response. "How've you been? You know, with the rebellion and all..." Her voice trailed away, and she went back to watching the skyline far ahead of her.

"What? You said it yourself, I'm having the time of my life!" Neptune laughed. At first, she was not quite sure where Noire was going, but then the other CPU shook her head.

"You were serious when you first arrived," she said. "I need you to be serious now, okay?"

Neptune fell silent. It was true her usual excitable personality had been toned down, but she had been remembering the meeting earlier that day. At the time, she had been ruthlessly reprimanded for her nonchalant behavior, and while she was not one to let criticism get to her, she knew when it was time to tread carefully.

Today, spending time with Noire had been like a game of Minesweeper. One wrong step and she would be in for it, yet she was still supposed to be her usual cheerful self: no sweat. Minesweeper can be entertaining when nothing is at risk except for a few minutes' worth of tapping squares.

Neptune nodded, but Noire could not see her. She assumed that the CPU was waiting for her response, so she answered aloud. "Right... Do you want me to transform?"

At this, Noire snorted. "Serious or not, you're still stupid. Do you really think that news about what was happening in Planeptune wouldn't spread?" Her question, dripping with sarcasm, answered itself. In that case, there was no need to transform and draw attention to the two of them.

Neptune frowned. "Does everybody know? Lowee and Leanbox too?" Noire met her question with a nod.

"You should try reading some of the debates and stuff on Leanbox's network. Most of them are picking sides. Funnily enough, the majority of Leanbox natives seem to side with you; you would probably be more welcome there than in your own country."

"Hahaha... Oh, isn't that ironic," the laughter gave way to a sigh. "Vert's people like me more than my own people. That does a lot of good for me."

"In case you were curious"—Noire glanced over her shoulder before looking away—"Lastation is just the opposite. As in, the people who live here, not... Oh, you know what I mean! I can't tell them to believe in you!"

The frustrated edge in Noire's voice was, for once, not targeted at Neptune. It was good to hear, and Neptune smiled. "Thanks. Sorry for causing trouble, but that's just how I am."

For the fifth time that day, the goddess cast a worried glance back at the girl following her. While she could have simply slowed down and walked alongside the girl, she seemed adamant in keeping the distance between them. Before she could say anything, Neptune changed the subject.

"Where are we going? You still haven't told me," she pressed. While she did not mind surprises, she did not like being kept in the dark.

"You'll find out when we get there," Noire declared. In a rare moment of forwardness, she turned around and smiled. "I have plans for the two of us to—"

A sudden, thundering noise drowned out Noire's voice, and Neptune did not hear the rest. At the same time, her senses were jammed with overwhelming pain. Unable to control her body and retain her balance, she stumbled as if someone had given her a push from behind.

"Hey! Neptune!" A voice and the sound of rapid footsteps reached her ears. "Give me a few more seconds, come on!"

Noire barely reached Neptune as she lurched forward, catching the girl before she could hit the ground. The echoes of the gunshot were only just starting to fade away. It did not take long for Noire to find the wound: Her left hand touched it the spot right underneath Neptune's right shoulder and came away stained red.

"You guys! Help me out!" she shouted, pointing at a group of people huddled nearby. She waved them over, and they exchanged wide-eyed glances before running to her side and supporting Neptune in her stead. "Get her inside! Take care of her while I look for the person who shot her!"

Neptune blinked away the tears that instinctively filled her eyes. The blur that she recognized as Noire disappeared, but she could hear someone behind her take off at a run. There was the whir of energy as HDD was activated, then the sound of rushing air as the goddess shot into the air.

"Thanks," she muttered to the pair of people who gave her their shoulders. They responded with positivity, encouraging her and supporting her as she set a snail's pace toward the closest building.

"You'll be alright," one of them smiled. "We've got you. Easy, now, take it slow."

"You're lucky that CPU Black Heart was there for you," the other grinned. "I'm sure that our Lady will find that person and bring them to justice, don't you worry!"

Neptune found the energy to curve her lips upwards into a smile. "Yeah, I know she will."

By applying basic forensics, Noire was able to narrow down the locations where her target could be. The shot had been taken from a high vantage point, somewhere behind the girl. That meant the assassin would have been shooting from a window or the roof of a tall building.

There was one tower particularly close, and two more farther behind it. Depending on the shooter's tech and weaponry, they could have been in one of the other towers, but Noire started with the first. Narrowing her gaze, she scanned it from bottom to top in search of open windows: nothing. The building had no open roof area, so she was about to move on when a small detail caught her eye. It may have been dark outside, but almost all of Lastation's residents stayed up late.

She summoned her sword and held it at the ready as she flew to the only darkened window in the tower. Rather than smash through the window with a flying drop kick like a superhero of justice, she simply swung and shattered the glass with her weapon. The room appeared dark from the outside, but moonlight illuminated the room. It was empty, save for a gun lying on the ground. Here was the sniper rifle, but the sniper was nowhere to be seen.

She picked it up. The gun was embossed with a name, handwritten in silver-steel letters on the side of the scope.


	3. Chapter 3: Aftermath (ReUpload mk2)

Neptune came to in a bed that was not her own. Her neck was cramped, she could not feel her arm, and she felt like she was sleeping on pins and needles. She was exhausted, more than she had ever been before.

The first thing she saw when she opened her eyes was the black-and-red blanket covering her legs: Lastation colors. With a start, she realized she was already sitting up; her head was bowed, and she was slumped over like she was sleeping at a table.

After a couple seconds, she gathered herself and moved to push back the covers but found that she could not move her right arm. Cold fear settled in her stomach, but she swallowed and lowered her eyes. In the dim lighting, she could make out a dark piece of fabric. Her arm lay across her lap like a small, napping kitten. It was bundled inside the material, which felt like soft leather or hardened cotton. "Whoa... Is it broken?"

She grimaced at the restricting brace around her shoulder. "Ah, darn." Her memory of last night was hazy. She could remember the sound and the painful sensation: loud, burning then numbing. It had been a really unpleasant experience, but Noire had been there. The puzzle fitted itself together: She was still in Lastation, probably the Basilicom, after she had been shot at last night.

She tried to move her arm, but it was a fruitless effort. Any movement on the upper right of her body resulted in immediate discomfort. Her shoulder was sore, there was no sensation in her arm, and—even though she did not give up easily—she was tired beyond belief. Her fatigue was probably owed to Planeptune's ever-decreasing shares. If she was not in such a bind, she would have done something about that.

Forcing herself to put some energy into her actions, she shoved the bedsheets away with her free hand and dragged herself to the edge of the bed. Struggling to this position drained a large portion of her stamina and probably her health points as well. She had to fight the urge to retreat to the center of the bed, where she could go limp and relax against the cushion-lined wall.

In the process of mustering her courage, she noticed that she was missing her hoodie. Instead, she was clothed in the tank top and shorts that she always wore under her sweater. She was wearing a sleeveless undershirt, but only one of her shoulders was bare. The right was wrapped in bandages that encircled her torso and shoulder. They were wrapped tight, almost to the point of being uncomfortable; she was reminded of Compa, whose work as a nurse classified as bondage with bandages.

The uniform that she had gotten from Noire was gone. It must have been a spare uniform, but it could have also been from the goddess' private collection. Neptune felt bad knowing that the clothes were probably ruined by bloodstains if not the bullet hole. At the same time, she knew it was definitely not her fault.

Restlessness and boredom prevailed over self-preservation. Her legs dangled out of the bed, and she pressed her toes to the carpet experimentally. Her sense of balance was far from comfortable; she was too tired to even sit up straight. If she was not careful, she would hit the floor and break something else. Ignoring her disease, she leaned forward and—

A small noise, the click of a lock to be specific, was easily audible in the silence of the bedroom. Half a second later, the door swung inward and the owner of the room, and the entirety of Lastation, peeked inside. "Hey, you're awa..."

She yelped as she saw the purple-haired girl about to rise to her feet. "Neptune! What are you doing?!"

Noire rushed into the room and took Neptune to the waist, pushing her back down onto the bed. Using force to prevent her charge from hurting herself was counterproductive, but it was better than letting her face-plant into the ground. "Oww! Agh, h-hey, Noire, that really hurt!" Neptune winced, squirming as she tried to roll onto her unpained side.

Noire drew back but kept Neptune pinned. "Sorry. I didn't mean to do that," she apologized. It was hard to tell if she had known what she was doing, but she really did look sorry.

Now that her smooth entrance was over, Noire drew back and stood over the bed to look down at the disabled CPU. Neptune squirmed and crawled back to the wall to rest against the pillows. "How are you?" Noire looked Neptune in the eye, then turned her gaze to the sling on her arm. "Does it hurt much?"

Neptune frowned and nodded her head a few times. "Yeah, it sorta does. I don't think love-tackling me to the bed helped much, although it did wonders in a whole different way..." she mumbled, glancing to the side for added effect.

The raven-haired goddess flushed and looked away, murmuring something under her breath. Having gotten what she wanted—an indirect apology was fine with her—she laughed and tapped her bound shoulder. "So, yeah. I've been shot before, right? What makes this one more important, besides being a key story event?"

"We aren't sure, but it has to be related to your shares. You probably guessed that already."

With that reminder of the ongoing conflict, Noire sat down on the side of the bed. Neptune had been unconscious since the incident, and no more than twelve hours had passed since then. Noire filled her in on everything that was going on. Neptune did not inquire about the details. In truth, most of the exposition was lost on her, but the abridged version was enough to satisfy her.

There was one elephant in the room that Noire had yet to bring up. The identity of the sniper was not confirmed, but she had found evidence shortly after the shot was fired. "This is the gun you were shot with."

Noire reached down and retrieved something hidden between the bed and the bedside cabinet. In her hands was the gun she had found at the scene of the crime. She handed it to Neptune, who laid it across her lap. "When I got to the sniper's perch, nobody was there, but this was lying on the ground. They... they must have left it behind when they made their escape."

Neptune examined the weapon, running her hand over the rifle. Decorated with attachments and built with plenty of detail, it seemed professionally made. As much as she wanted to rest it on her shoulder and look down the scope, doing so was impossible with one hand. "I'm not an expert when it comes to this long-range stuff," she admitted, "but this is a pretty sweet pea shooter. A hundred credits says I could have hit myself from that distance!"

All the ammo had been removed, and the firing mechanism was on safety mode. She messed around for a while before Noire spoke up again. "The owner's name is written on the side of the scope," she said finally. Neptune glanced at her and then at the weapon. She put it down in her lap and checked the scope: nothing. "Other side," Noire said.

"Oh, of course. I knew that, defi... definitely..." Neptune stared at the name engraved on the scope and went quiet. At first, she thought she may have misread it, but when she looked up, Noire would not meet her eyes. "Uh..." she faltered. "It... It isn't a common name, by any chance?"

Lastation's CPU sighed soundlessly and shook her head. Her shoulders deflated, and suddenly the prideful goddess appeared much smaller than she normally did.

"No. This gun belongs to my sister."

 _ **Descent**_

Even as the two goddesses met in Noire's room, the Oracles congregated in the main room of the Basilicom de Lastation. Joining them at the conference table were the other CPUs, who sat in silence while the four conversed. Blanc was disinterested enough so as to not pay attention, instead sneaking peeks at a book in her lap. On the other hand, Vert looked from speaker to speaker with narrowed eyes, poised as if to take notes on every uttered word.

The initiator of the conference, Kei, cleared her throat. "My apologies for summoning you all here on such short notice," she started, meeting every pair of eyes. "With the issue of the rebellion in Planeptune, this is something that should have been of no importance to the other three nations. However—"

"Of no importance?!" gasped a shrill voice. Surprisingly enough, it was Histoire who interrupted. The pages of her enchanted book fluttered, and it rose upwards before she could bring it, and herself, under control. She straightened her back and put her hands in her lap, issuing a hasty apology.

Kei's voice did not change as she continued. "However. For Neptune, one of the four goddesses, to be seriously injured, and for the evidence to lead to one of our own CPU Candidates... This is something that all of us should be aware of."

She paused for a moment, and her words were met with a couple well-timed sighs. "If nobody has any objections, allow me to explain the current situation.

"Less than twenty-four hours ago, Neptune was struck in the back, underneath her right shoulder, by a bullet coated and filled with a strong paralytic poison. The shot damaged her right shoulder and paralyzed her right arm. According to the analysis from one of our hospitals, a full recovery could take up to six months."

At this, Blanc snapped to attention. Across the table, Vert met her eyes. They seemed to share the same surprise.

"Noire tells me that Neptune was unable to transform subsequent to the attack, and she had trouble walking for a few minuets until she collapsed altogether. She was carried back to the Basilicom, and she is currently resting in Noire's room. Her condition has stabilized, so we can assume she will recover in all due time."

"Excuse me," Histoire was the first to speak. "Was there any blood from the injury?"

Kei nodded. She had been present when her goddess had removed Neptune's top and administered first aid. "Quite a bit. Is that not to be expected?" she asked. The pages of Histoire's tome rustled.

"Blood is a sign of mortality," Histoire answered slowly, her voice loud and clear. "In our world, one with divine power does not bleed from regular wounds." The Oracle's words were followed by silence, in which almost all eyes in the room were trained upon her.

Chika broke the silence. Her usual flippancy was replaced by concern. "Paralysis poison can be cured with some medicine or magic, right? Even for humans and monsters, those two methods work perfectly fine. The CPUs of all people should not have any problems."

"That is usually the case," Kei shook her head. "But status ailments can be very unpredictable. When bound by the rules of reality, a powerful poison could resist detoxin, paralaxin, even panacea or elixir."

"But that's only in extreme cases, no?" Chika placed a finger on her chin. "And I've only heard of that happening when the patient is a human, never a CPU."

"The bullet was lodged in Neptune's shoulder for ten to fifteen minutes, and a large dosage of poison must have been injected into her body," said Kei with a frown. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the bullet in question, placing it upright on the table and sliding it to the center. It was no different from the typical round found in a sniper's kit: cylindrical and twice the length of a regular bullet with an elongated tip.

Vert stared at the object on the table, then turned her gaze to the one who had placed it there. "The bullet was not taken out within fifteen minutes?" she asked, disbelief showing in her arched brow. Kei did not respond immediately, but she lowered her eyes.

"I am afraid not. Noire did not think to remove the bullet, nor could she have done so without medical tools on hand. She and myself are not proficient in medical care. We did all that we could but left further treatment up to the hospital."

"I am glad to know that you are caring for Neptune in her time of need," Histoire interrupted from her vantage point. She floated down to the table, coming level with both Vert and Kei. "The poison would not have taken long to enter Neptune's bloodstream either way. There was nothing else that could have been done." Kei turned grateful eyes in her direction.

"Black Heart's investigations led to the discovery of a light sniper rifle that had fired only minutes earlier," she continued. "The gun is one of Uni's whom I have not seen in the Basilicom since yesterday morning."

Kei paused and rested her elbows on the table, her chin on her hands. "Although Uni adds up to be a prime suspect, the chances that she is actually the assailant are low. All four nations are on friendly terms, and there has not been blatant animosity between any of the CPUs or their Candidates."

Blanc clicked her tongue loudly enough to grab the attention of everyone in the room. "The chances are low?" she pulled a face. "And how exactly do you know that?"

"Blanc!" Mina glared at her, but the goddess only shrugged and looked down. "Do not be so rude!"

"No, it is a valid question," Kei intervened. Her action only earned her a baleful gaze from the goddess of white. "We have no evidence that Uni is innocent. I let my personal feelings influence my judgement."

Lowee's CPU snorted and, if not for the scholarly figure sitting next to her, would have vocalized her opinion. As it was, the brown-haired girl lost her rebellious attitude when her book and hat were taken away from her.

"Do not forget that everybody present is on equal footing," chided Mina. "I will not have you represent Lowee with such unaggressed hostility." Blanc's features darkened, but she did not say anything more. She scowled and crossed her arms in resignation.

After one last disapproving frown at the sulking CPU, Mina restarted the discussion. "There is one thing I am curious about. I think we can all recall at least one time that our own nation's shares have been low, even hitting zero at times like during the ASIC conflict. How come this has never happened before?"

"This is an extreme case scenario," Kei answered. "For a long time, Planeptune has had virtually no shares. Correct me if I am wrong, but Planeptune was going through a rough patch even before the rebellion." She looked to the Oracle of the aforementioned nation for confirmation.

Histoire nodded and continued from there. "Never before have our shares been near zero for such a prolonged period of time. This brings me to an important issue: the transience of the CPUs when they are without faith for too long." Her eyes hardened, and she smoothed the front of her dress. "Neptune is usually capable of rebounding from most injuries within minutes, like all the goddesses. Yet recently, she was shot and is still incapacitated. This reveals a major flaw that is most likely shared between all four goddesses: They are all much more heavily dependent on faith than we originally thought."

Blanc looked up with something besides apathy in her eyes. She did not speak, though Vert took the words right from her mouth. "So, you're saying that we could be removed from power if enough people wanted it?"

Kei shook her head. "Not just removed from power, but also killed. I hate to think what would have happened if Uni... if the sniper had acted when Neptune was even weaker, or simply struck a vital point." Her slip up did not go unnoticed, but the room's occupants were gracious enough to let it by.

"Let me backtrack to what's happening in Planeptune," Chika spoke, preventing the tension from smothering anyone. "Histoire, didn't you say something about radicals or rebels or something?" The Oracle sitting atop her book nodded. "Those kinds of people could pop up anywhere. Give them something to use as leverage, and they could grow into large threats to the CPUs."

"These groups seem ridiculous at first glance," Histoire sighed, "but they can amass an alarming amount of people to support their cause as pawns. This is not the first time people have turned away from goddess worship, but heretic groups are much more eminent now that we are aware of this vulnerability."

"Excuse me," Mina rose. All eyes were on her as she continued. "Recently, faith in Neptune has been wavering so much that some are going beyond non-belief and turning against her. If we factor in the general rule of our world's democracy, which is that a CPU's power stems from their people's faith, would that mean that the opposite is also true: that negativity and resentment can weaken said CPU?"

The room fell silent for a long while. Blanc met Vert's eyes again, and again, they seemed to share the same thoughts.

As if to end the meeting on a bad note, Histoire offered a final detail. "That is precisely what happened to the CPU of the lost, ancient nation of Tari. Her people revolted and ended her tyranny by starving her of power."

On that note, the meeting was adjourned. Kei stood up and, in her usual fashion, thanked the attendees. The representatives from Lowee and Leanbox left soon after, but Histoire stayed where she was. She stayed stationary until Kei saw her and understood the Oracle's silent request. When Kei nodded her approval, Histoire headed to the stairs to find the room where Neptune resided.

After Histoire turned the corner, Kei was the only one left in the main room. The manner with which she had conducted the meeting vanished, and she sank into her seat at the empty table. She folded her hands and rested her brow on top.

"Uni... Where are you?"

 _ **Descent**_

Though nowhere near as cold as its northern counterpart, the Land of Black Regality was experiencing sweater weather. Coats were pulled tightly around shoulders, their tails fluttering in the breeze. Unfortunately, Nepgear was not equipped with one herself; she had not come to Lastation thinking it would be windy. Her two traveling companions, Rom and Ram, were not bothered by the low temperature. Wrapped in their fleecy winter jackets, they were anything but affected.

"I guess you two are used to the temperature, huh?" Nepgear sighed and smile. The twins rarely changed out of their winter clothing. They went outside sporting blue and pink in both rain or storm, hot or cold.

"Yup! Doesn't bother us at all, right Rom?" said the girl in pink, looking to her double for agreement.

Rom nodded and looked at Nepgear, whose arms were crossed to conserve body heat. "Miss Nepgear... Are you cold?"

Young Miss Nepgear shook her head, straining to keep a pleasant expression. "It's okay, I'm alright. Thanks for asking, though."

Rom ignored her and moved closer, fiddling with the buttons on her chest. "Do you want my jacket? I'm used to the cold..."

"G-goodness, no! You don't have to," Nepgear denied and took a step back. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Keep your clothes on."

"But, Miss Nepgear..." pouted Rom as she fixed both girls with pleading eyes. "You're cold..."

A minute of reassurance later, Rom's hands were safely away from the golden buttons on her top. Without idle chitchat to distract them, the trio was reminded of the task they had set out to do. Three should have been four, but the girl who normally filled the party's fourth slot was missing. As they walked the streets, Nepgear's eyes flitted between her two friends.

"Hey Rom, Ram." Nepgear's quiet voice got their attention. The twins turned in sync to look back at her. She had fallen slightly behind, but she made no effort to catch up. "Uni wouldn't actually shoot Neptune. You agree, right?"

Her mouth went dry from the implication. She had not wanted to sound insecure, but the words had caught in her throat. Two people close to her heart were at stake. Her sister was in danger of losing her life, and her best friend had disappeared without a trace.

It was unnerving to think that Uni hated Neptune to the point of trying to kill her. The thought was insane, and Nepgear refused to believe it until she heard the story from the accused herself. There were so many possibilities: Uni had been kidnapped, Uni was not actually at fault, Uni—

"Nepgear? Nepgear! Hey!" a childish voice drew her attention. Blinking hard, she turned to face Ram, who was about to poke her in the eyes. "Don't ask a question and ignore the answer!" she snapped.

"Uni is... really nice," Rom put forward with a nod and a hesitant smile. "She wouldn't shoot Miss Neptune... They're both nice."

"Right? I bet Uni woulda missed anyway!"

"But... Uni can hit anything..."

"Yeah, so? It... Wait, 'Miss' Neptune? Why are you calling her Miss too?!"

As the twins duked it out, Nepgear could not help but smile. They were in the middle of an argument, but they both agreed on one thing: Uni was innocent. Uni was a close friend before she was a CPU Candidate. Nepgear, Rom, and Ram knew her well enough to know she would never intentionally hurt one of her friends.

Regardless, it was concrete that the gun-toting girl disappeared around the same time an attempt was made on Neptune's life. It was frightening, disheartening news and struck at Nepgear's heart.

Between Uni and Neptune, who should have taken priority? Was it her sister, who was bedridden and maybe even mortally wounded, or her closest friend? Uni was a strong girl, but something was undoubtedly wrong, and Nepgear wanted to find her as soon as possible. At the same time, she wanted to rush to the Basilicom in Lastation to visit and care for her sister, whether she was welcome or not.

To say the least, there was a lot on Nepgear's mind. it was one thing to hear that her sister had been shot, but it was another thing to hear that her best friend had been the one to do it. She could not even imagine how Noire was dealing with the situation.

"Miss Nepgear, don't cry!" someone tugged on her sleeve. The purple-haired girl gasped, and tears fell from her eyes to the path below.

Rom was comforting her with a quivering lip and a gentle touch. The girl in blue looked like she was about to burst into tears instead, but she stopped when a smile broke across the purple Candidate's face. As she was wiping her eyes, another hand tugged sharply on the other sleeve of her uniform.

"Yeah! Just because they found a gun doesn't mean it was Uni!" Ram contrasted her sister's subtlety with volume. "What if she was kidnapped? Or they just used her gun? It's probably those losers who want to take over Planeptune!"

Ram could only be talking about the Anti-Neptune Force, the group rooting for Neptune's dismissal. Their campaign had snowballed, evolving from spam email and online complaints to riots and full-fledged fights. With the rebellion laying metaphorical siege to the Basilicom, it had only been a matter of time until something like this happened.

"Gamindustri to Nepgear, do you hear me?" said a familiar voice. Nepgear shook her head and turned to face the Lowee CPU Candidate. "You don't? Oh, stop daydreaming, let's go find Uni!" Ram yelled with the highest tone of command a child could possess.

Despite her foreboding thoughts, Nepgear sighed and smiled. "Yeah, let's go. Thanks Ram, thanks Rom." Forcing her disparage into the back of her mind, Nepgear shook her head again before nodding with resolve. "We need to find Uni as fast as we can!"

 _ **Descent**_

The setting sun signaled a brief respite for the hardest worker in all of Planeptune. Twenty-four hours had never before felt so long. Histoire welcomed the night as an excuse to take a breather. Neptune had begun to do more work as of late, but even so, Histoire knew she was the one capable of keeping the nation afloat. This entailed working overtime behind the scenes, but she intended to carry out her duty until it was literally impossible. Considering the source of her power, a mystical book, literal was a good way to put it.

Excusing herself from the office, Histoire shut the door and floated through the quiet corridors. Compared to the constant buzz of the workplace, the ambience of the Basilicom was many times calmer and more soothing.

However peaceful her ambience was, she could not escape reality for long. The door to Neptune's room was shut. If Histoire were to fail in her task, that door would remain closed.

She was not taking a break in good conscience. Her place was at the desk or in the library working to keep Planeptune from internal collapse. She felt a twinge of guilt being idle for more than a few minutes at a time. Abilities were meant to be used to their fullest. Her powers had been a gift from her predecessor, who bestowed them with the hopes of Planeptune becoming "a force to be reckoned with".

Though she wanted nothing but to apply herself twenty-four seven, she knew it would be better to give herself some time to relax. She was able to forego sleep and lose nothing except her patience, but having an on-off switch for insomnia did nothing to better her spirit. She was not a machine; her magic was powered by her focus and mental fortitude, which was impacted by her stress levels.

 _"You've gotta chill out sometimes, Stressty!"_ scolded a voice in her mind. _"All work and no play makes for a dull day!"_

Histoire headed down the hall with the intention of making tea. The kitchen was empty, but she was glad to have it that way. With Neptune absent for obvious reasons and Nepgear out in search of Uni, there was no one else that would have been in the building.

She set a pot on the stove and heated it. It would be a few minutes until the water was ready, so she landed on the countertop to wait. Histoire would have waited for the whole duration of the brewing process if not for a distraction in the form of an unexpected visitor. From across the room, sharp footsteps interrupted her thoughts.

"Histoire. I hope I am not intruding," said the speaker as they entered the room. Kei Jinguji, one of the only people who consistently spoke with proper formalities, bowed slightly in the doorway.

"Of course not." Histoire rose to greet her guest. "The Basilicom staff are more than capable of handling whatever issues may arise," she said, hovering eye level with the white-haired girl. "Would you like some tea? I started brewing some, so it will only be a minute or two."

"I appreciate it. Thank you," Kei nodded. "Do you mind if I stay awhile?" she asked after a moment. Histoire motioned to one of the seats around the breakfast counter.

Her guest thanked her with a small smile then sat down without a word. Unsure of how to start a conversation, Histoire gave the other Oracle a sidelong glance. Kei's attention was riveted on a bookcase, and she was scanning its shelves methodically.

When the indicator on the kettle lit up, Histoire floated across the counter to get it. Tea leaves from a black-and-silver storage tin went into the pot, and she moved the pot to the table. At the same time, Histoire busied herself looking for dishware in the cupboard.

"Magic must be convenient," Kei said offhandedly, lifting the lid of the teapot. Even as she said it, Histoire telekinetically set a cup down in front of her. "Thanks."

Histoire put her own cup down and held both her hands close to the surface of the teapot. "Being able to use magic is certainly helpful," she nodded. Though she appeared to be warming her hands, she had actually completed the infusion via a spell she had perfected on her fleeting spare time. "It saves a lot of time, considering how the simplest actions prove to be tedious at this size."

 **(' ^_^)**

A faint smile formed on Kei's face. "Magic or not, you have a reputation for taking a notoriously long time to do anything," she remarked. Before Histoire could reply to the quip, Kei changed the subject. "By the way, this tea is excellent. I have to admit, it may even be better than what we have in Lastation."

"I am almost certain of that," Histoire mumbled, occupied with her drink. Her first priority to taste the revitalizer she had looked forward to for almost an entire day now. The fragrance and flavor of warm tea flooded her senses.

She felt better in an instant. "If I were to name one thing in which Planeptune was superior in, it would be our tea. Should we lose everything, at least we will have warm drinks."

The pair smiled at each other. Even knowing the grim double meaning of her own statement, Histoire felt the mood in the room shift to something a bit more amiable. Neither Oracle for small talk, they fell into a comfortable silence. Histoire took it upon herself to refill both cups when they were emptied. She was halfway through her second cup while Kei was finishing her first.

"How is Neptune?" Histoire broke the silence. "Has she been alright?"

Relief overwhelmed her when Kei nodded "Yes. She fell asleep shortly after you left. Neptune already has my CPU's undivided attention." Kei took a sip of her tea and set it down on the table. Her words would have sounded unsavory if not for the upturned corners of her lips.

"I hope she is not a burden," Histoire frowned, knowing her hope would be in vain. "I cannot thank you enough for taking care of Neptune, but her whimsical disposition will place untold stress unto your mind."

Kei raised an eyebrow and leaned a chin on her hand. "You may be right, but she may not be as much trouble as you would think."

Like her counterpart, Histoire's eyebrow went up. Neptune's main characteristics could easily irritate anyone not on the same wavelength. Because of that, Histoire had imagined her to be sent back to Planeptune after a day or two with an attached letter of apology.

"I do not know her as well as you," Kei continued, "but she is starting to mature. Completed quests logged on the GuildHub show that she put a lot of effort into the co-operative work she did with Noire. Not to mention, she was very efficient. Would you agree?"

Histoire thought for a moment before answering. "No. I would not," she said. Under duress, one would either break or become stronger. Thankfully, Neptune seemed to be of the latter category. "I may sound heartless when I say this, but I hope this situation makes her grow into a strong, reliable person."

When it was clear that there was nothing else to say on the matter, Kei took the initiative to start a new topic. "How is the current state of affairs in Planeptune? Has the Planeptune Liberation Force made any movements?"

It was obvious that the Anti-Neptune faction would have taken action at some point, and confronting even a weakened CPU was a foolhardy strategy. If the rebels had learned something from the skirmish between three of the Hearts, plus IF, it was that they did not stand a chance on a level playing field. To even the odds, they resorted to underhanded yet effective tactics.

Yet, there had not been any further activity from the rebel organization since the trigger had been pulled. A seasoned strategist would know to stick to the basics and exploit any weaknesses, and it was likely that the Planeptune Liberation Force was led by someone with substantial skill. They incapacitated Neptune but made no move to finish her off or seize control of the Basilicom. In fact, they had not made a single move at all.

Kei listened to Histoire's explanation without a word. The half-empty teacup turned in her hands. "How odd," she mused.

Her clockwork mind must have been at work behind her blue eyes. Kei was brilliant in business and in thought; surely she would have an idea as to why the rebels were suddenly laying low. "There is not enough information to come to a conclusion. For now, the best thing to do would be to keep an eye out for any further activity. I would suggest establishing a link via the information network; IF or Gust would be a help in that department."

The teapot was nearly empty. Histoire moved to brew another pot, but the bigger Oracle stopped her. "No, it's fine. I have something to ask you," she said. "I wanted... needed... What is your opinion on the matter of the assassin?"

Histoire knew from her friend's hesitation what Kei was asking of her. Dishonesty would not do but neither would it do to give hasty reassurance. With that in mind, Histoire blinked and told Kei, "As you said before: 'There is not enough information to come to a conclusion.' **(￣^￣)** "

Kei chuckled, surprising the pint-sized Oracle. "What about her disappearance and the weapon found at the scene?"

"Her disappearance and her weapon pardon her just as much as they incriminate her," Histoire reasoned. "The connotation between both findings can be flipped. Was she enacting a hasty plan to attack Neptune and flee Lastation, or was she abducted and made to appear guilty?" Her finger traced the lettering of the page she was sitting on.

"You're right. Anyway, I can't imagine Uni wanting to do anything with those people." Kei picked up her cup and hesitated for only a second before downing the rest of the liquid in it. "They snatched her from underneath our noses. I underestimated them; I did not think they would be so organized, nor so competent."

"Kei?" Histoire floated closer, but the Oracle did not react.

"To protect the peace and uphold the pride of Lastation," Kei projected, her voice twice as loud, "I will personally see to the defeat of the Planeptune Liberation Force and the recovery of our CPU Candidate," she declared with a small smile at Planeptune's Oracle. "As a side objective, we will protect Neptune as if she were our own. Noire would not have any issues with this. If you would have it, Lastation will ally with Planeptune for the duration of this conflict."

Histoire stared at Kei. Glad that she was no longer alone in this battle—yet shocked at Kei's sudden, swift-as-storm change in demeanor—she moved her lips without sound. Her eye's met Kei's, and the girl with white hair smiled and asked, "Is that alright?"

Instead of replying with words, Histoire replied through action. Given, she was only able to wrap her arms around Kei's shoulder, but a hug was a hug nonetheless. "I cannot express how thankful I am to you, Kei."

Kei returned the hug by placing a small, gentle hand on the miniature girl's back. "I am simply doing my duty as an Oracle and as a friend."


	4. Chapter 4: Day's End

The sun had set in the Land of Black Regality. The many towering buildings of the city were silhouettes against the orange skyline. Around dusk, a majority of Lastation citizens got off work ready to enjoy the nightlife, others the night shift. Few people went this early to bed. Life as a denizen of Lastation entailed long, tiring days on the job, but rarely did those denizens complain about their city.

The patron of Lastation herself, Noire, was not gearing up for a night on the town, nor did she have any urgent requests. Cooped up in her room, she hummed to herself while she chewed on a chocolate pastry. Next to her, in the bed, lay an unconscious Neptune. Not even an hour after waking up that morning, the CPU had fallen asleep for the entire day. Noire had a feeling that Neptune would wake up feeling wide awake—at least, until daybreak tomorrow, at which point she would run out of energy and fall asleep for another twelve hours.

Dinner hour had already passed, and Noire looked down at the white, orange-striped bakery box that had arrived at the Basilicom a short while ago. Then, it had contained well over a baker's dozen; now, it was missing a few. Of all people, Kei had delivered the box to her room.

"As it seems, you will not be having a proper dinner tonight, Lady Noire," the Oracle had said. "There is enough in here for the both of you, maybe another."

Sold at the idea of food—something sweet, especially—Noire had not thought twice before opening the box and picking one of her favorites. Soon after, she was overcome with curiosity about the sender. The box had not arrived with any letter or memo. Even if she had not made any calls, someone had to have placed the order; the address of the Basilicom did not appear on any mailing lists. If only she had asked Kei before dismissing her...

That thought in the back of her mind, Noire reached for the box and grabbed something at random. Whoever had been thoughtful enough to send this gift, they had her gratitude.

When Neptune came to, she barely moved save for a yawn. She was sleeping with her back against the wall, just as she had been that morning. Noire's head was turned in the other direction; she had not noticed her friend stir.

When the CPU did glance over at the bed, she jumped when she saw Neptune looking back at her. The goddess' eyes were weighted by sleep; her fluttering, half-lidded gaze sent a shiver down Noire's spine. Noire could only stare, frozen with a chocolate roll halfway to her lips.

"Uh... Want one?"

A minute later, Neptune was seated and nibbling at the edge of a croissant. Her temperance was almost heartbreaking in a way; it was not like her to be a dainty eater. Noire offered the subdued-looking goddess another bun in hope that more to eat would rekindle Neptune's appetite.

"Here, I think this one has custard inside," she said, holding out the roll for her friend to take. Neptune hesitated then put the croissant in her mouth to take the second. Feeling like a fool, Noire berated herself: smart move, giving something to a person who only had one hand to use. "Ah, um, sorry. I could hold it for you..."

Neptune shook her head. The flaky pastry waggled in between her teeth, dropping crumbs onto her lap. "It's 'kay," she said, her voice muffled by bread. "Gimme 'nother one and I'll put it on my head f' later!"

Atthough she was making jokes like always, her body language was a cause for alarm. Neptune spoke with a slowness much unlike her and continued to eat with her eyes downcast and squinted, blinking every once in a while. Every few seconds, she would shoot furtive glances at Noire and the box on the bedside table, but whatever was on her mind went unsaid.

This continued for at least two minutes until the tension in the room was at an unbearable level. No longer satisfied with chocolate bread and stiff silence, Noire put the rest of her treat aside and stood up, her movement drawing Neptune's attention. She took a step toward Neptune and fixed her with a frown before leaning over to give her a light tap on the shoulder.

"Look, speak up, will you?" She purposely used a scornful tone. "It isn't like you to be quiet. If you have something to say, spit it out."

Neptune tilted her head and tried to respond, the croissant still dangling from her mouth. Noire snagged it from the air and cleared her throat, scowling.

"Sorry sister," Neptune apologized after licking her lips. "I'm tired, but it's nothing. Couple naps'll fix it."

Annoyance creased Noire's brow. She jabbed a finger. "You're just saying that. You and I both know why. It's because of your share energy, and a nap or two certainly isn't going to solve anything."

A rare shadow crossed Neptune's face. The CPU of Planeptune scoffed as she turned away from Noire to stare at the opposite window. "Well, gee, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to lose my country."

Noire tensed and opened her mouth to reply, but her breath caught on the first syllable. Nothing came to mind: no retort, no excuse, no apology. She swallowed and tried to defend herself, but Neptune cut her off.

"Listen, Noire"—Neptune lifted her injured arm and winced in pain—"can you just drop the whole No-Shares Neptune thing? I know I always tease you about being lonely, but... you know. I can't ignore everything people say about me, even if 'people' means almost everybody in Gamindustri."

Neptune crossed her arms—at least, she crossed one—and fell silent. She fidgeted and refused to even look over her shoulder at Noire, who wanted to reach out and remind her of the minority who did continue to believe in her.

In the end, no words were passed between the two for a while. Despite being in proximity of the other goddess, Noire of Lastation was left to her own thoughts.

This was the first time Neptune had snapped at her or, as far as Noire knew, anyone. Even in the past, at times when Neptune had every right to be mad, the girl had never really gotten angry. All it took to tip to balance was a single thoughtless remark; having been friends with Neptune for decades now, the black-haired goddess almost found it unbelievable.

Noire shifted on one foot and summoned her voice. Her hand automatically found its place on her hip. "Neptune... What's wrong? You can tell me, I'll listen."

"Oh, nothing. I'm just thinking, for once."

The line was delivered with no shortage of self-deprecation, as if Neptune were sulking. Even though Noire wanted to smack the purple CPU for her reticence, she stayed her hand. Anything she did at this moment would only come off as cavalier.

When Neptune was playing the fool, she was agreeable and quick to forgive. When she was not, she was more like Purple Heart in demeanor: sometimes aloof, usually cold, and generally unpredictable. Taking from the few times Noire had been subject to the goddess' deviating personality, she decided that she much preferred it when Neptune was transformed. HDD seemed to regulate the girl's behavior if only by a little bit.

Silence waged a war on her composure. She looked desperately at Neptune's back in search of a way to restart the conversation, but the CPU did not turn around.

The civil war in Planeptune had begun not long ago, and it had reached its height only yesterday with the assassination attempt. The leader of said city had lost her country, citizens, and power, all at relatively the same time. While a reality check had been a long time coming, Neptune was thrown into the deep end with her hands tied; she was in over her head, so to speak.

Having imagined the weight riding on her rival's shoulders, Noire ran her tongue over the back of her teeth and wet her lips. It was not a position that anyone, CPU or not, would envy. Should she have been in Neptune's shoes, losing Lastation would have been a sore point for her as well. A prideful ruler of the nation she had built from the ground up, such a loss would be devastating to her.

Conflicted between feeling guilt or indignation, the goddess shakily sat down where she stood. Her back to the side of the bed, she let her head tilt back and rest on the duvet. She absently bit into the croissant in her hand. It was buttery and flaky, tokens of a good baker, but it did not remove the sour taste in her mouth.

Why was Neptune mad at her? Did Neptune hate her? These thoughts she dismissed as conjecture. She and Neptune were good friends, and they clashed on a regular basis. One argument did not have enough surface area to generate actual hatred.

Only after polishing off the crescent-shaped breakfast roll did Noire remember who she had confiscated it from. The fact did not bother her in the slightest, which surprised her in itself. Unlike Neptune, she thought it unbecoming to take food from others. Pressing her fingers to her lips, she exhaled and stared at the carpet.

The sheets moved behind her. Before she could turn around, a hand touched her shoulder. "Hey, Nowa," said a voice directly in her ear. "If you do that, I'll get the wrong idea."

Noire jumped and almost stood up out of surprise. "W-what? What am I doing? I'm not doing anything."

"How was my croissant?" Neptune asked, lowering her voice. She talked slowly and lingered on every syllable. "Did it taste better after I sunk my teeth into it?"

Her face heating up, Noire pulled herself away from the girl's grip. "No! I wasn't actually hungry! I-I was just annoyed!"

"What about your fingers?" continued Neptune. "You totally thought I wasn't watching when you sucked 'em clean, huh?" she teased. Lifting a hand to her mouth, she drew her tongue lazily over two fingers.

"What are you talking about? You're seeing things!"

Lying on her side with her arm dangling out of the bed, Neptune laughed and waved her fingers. "So, which one is it Noire?" she asked, her voice back to its normal volume. "Because you were mad, you were hungry, or you just wanted to eat my food?"

"Neither! None! Damn it!" Noire hit the side of the bed and glowered at the smug face. "I hate you."

"But do you really?" the CPU laughed. "Whatever you say, Noire dearest. Now, lend me a hand, would you? I'm gonna fall."

The trickster's request went unheeded. A few minutes of being stuck like a turtle on its back would not do her any harm. Her pleading was ineffective on Noire, who moved out of reach and feigned deafness.

Before even a minute had passed, there was a knock on the door. Noire frowned but got up to answer the door, confident that Kei would not allow just anybody to enter the Basilicom. "What is it?" she said as she opened the door.

Before the visitor even showed their face, Neptune shouted in a frantic voice. "Hey, I'm so glad you're here! Can you help me? I'm stuck!"

The brown-haired figure at the door was clothed in a blue jacket with a silver hem. "What? Nep?" When IF peeked under Noire's arm and saw Neptune looking like she was about to fall off the bed, she gasped and pushed her way into the room. "Nep! Hold on, I'll help you!"

As IF made a beeline for the bed to assist her friend—who was not in any real danger—Noire sighed and shifted her bangs. The scene was familiar; she herself had done the same thing hours ago, when she had visited Neptune in the morning.

It did not take long for the gust of beautiful wind to realize that her protective instinct was misplaced. Once she noticed Noire standing indifferent at the foot of the bed, her panic was replaced by skepticism.

"Wait a second... I feel like I'm missing something here."

 _ **Descent**_

It took a while for IF to figure out what had happened from two different accounts. Once she had sorted truth from half-truth, she sat back in her chair and let out a sigh. It only made sense that Neptune's version of the story was the most exaggerated. "I should've expected something like this," she grumbled, reaching for the box that Noire offered to her. She grabbed a sweet bun and held it up to her eyes. "Thanks, Lady Noire. I haven't eaten all day."

Noire put the box down and nodded twice. "Oh, uh, yeah. No problem, IF."

From where she was seated on the bed, Neptune squinted at Noire, looking for something to poke fun at. "Bet you're thinking something like, 'I wish I was closer with IF' or whatever."

"What? No, that's not what I'm thinking about!" Noire stomped her foot on the carpet and glared.

IF gnawed hungrily at her snack as the goddesses went back and forth. Her eyes lit up when she discovered the cream filling in the middle. She was happy to share in some of the bakery delectables. Even though she had some reservations, hunger would not permit her to refuse a free meal.

"Admit it, you're just jealous that she isn't as friendly with you as she is with me!"

"You wish. At least I can have an intelligent conversation with her. You've never had one of those, huh?"

As an accredited adventurer not officially associated with any nation or its Basilicom, IF was free to travel and offer her services wherever she pleased. She was essentially a freelance, a sellsword, a mercenary, though her line of work was more of an agent's rather than a hired fighter. Normally, she remained within the borders of Planeptune, since her closest friends—Compa, Histoire, and many others to name—happened to live there. Her sense of kinship was easily the reason she spent most of her time working and hanging out in the city of Purple Progress.

By no means did IF dislike Lastation, Lowee, or Leanbox, but she never looked for an excuse to visit the Basilicoms of the three neighboring nations. All of the CPUs welcomed her as a close friend, but that closeness was only accredited to IF's participation in the battle against the ASIC. If not for that common enemy which brought them together, IF would be no more than an agent of Planeptune in the eyes of the other goddesses.

As if to ease IF's unrest, Noire stopped arguing for a moment and gave her visitor an apologetic smile. She pointed to the box on the table between them, wordlessly saying, "Help yourself."

IF understood, nodded, and smiled. Shrugging off some of her formalities, she reached over and took something from the box. Sometimes, she forgot: Bonds forged during hard times can be incredibly strong. Her conscience always tried to make her think otherwise, but moments like this one helped her remember she was in the company of friends.

The dispute seemed to be coming to a close: Neptune was laughing to herself, triumphant about something, and Noire was with her hand on her head, eyes closed and brow forming a frustrated line.

After a few seconds, IF cleared her throat. "Hey, Lady Noire." Noire looked at her and hummed, prompting her to go on. "Is something on your mind?"

The goddess shook her head. "Not really. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I should probably tell you why I'm here." IF took a quick bite from her sweet, paste-filled pastry. "First of all, I wanted to see how Nep was doing."

Neptune's face lit up at the mention of her name.

"But more importantly, I heard about the attack and I'm trying to collect as much data as possible," she continued, tearing a piece of the bun off with her fingers. "My colleague hasn't been around, since she's been working full-time under a different banner..." IF stopped and blew out through the corner of her mouth.

Neptune groaned and pulled the sheets up to her chest. "And here I thought you actually liked me. Did you at least bring gifts?"

Noire sighed. "Ignore her." She smiled again and spoke in a cordial, conversational tone. "How's are things over in Planeptune? Busy?"

The sigh that preceded the girl's response was a good indicator of how things were. "You bet. It's like hell, there's been so much to do lately." IF draped an arm over the back of the chair and looked at Neptune. Her expression told both CPUs more than they wanted to know. "You're better off in Lastation, really."

Progress had been all but halted in the land named after it. With the discontinuation of the most recent console put out by the nation, Planeptune's remaining CPU Candidate and Oracle were hard-pressed to make a rebound. Unfortunately, their rivaling nations had long since advanced in the field of technology; currently, no Planeptunian tech could hold a candle to Lowee's newest, Lastation's finest, or Leanbox's best. That was an issue in and out of itself, but combined with the disintegrating order of power within the nation, it was an ill-timed disaster.

Even Planeptune's research-and-development team was starting to lose momentum. This was their third failure in terms of profit and reception. Nepgear, the most active and outspoken member, was struggling to keep R&D from disbanding. She insisted they continue hardware development, but her opinion was overruled. Clutching at straws, her desperation was made clear, but her optimism was lost on the grizzled, disconcerted researchers. Nepgear's presence at every meeting weathered the loss of members if only by a small number. However much she argued her point, the team was not convinced that Planeptune would be able to make it. This was their third failure in terms of profit and reception. They were ready to move on.

To make problems worse, rumors were being spread about conspiracies between the ailing country and its neighbors. Some said that Planeptune was seeking help from Leanbox in the form of cross-compatible consoles, while others stated that Leanbox was looking to absorb Planeptune to overpower its direct competitor, Lastation. IF wanted to put down the rumors as groundless, but...

"... It's hard to deny the truth when it's right in front of you," the scout finished and sighed. "Planeptune's best, maybe only option is to get help from the other nations. As much as I hate to say it, that's the situation." She motioned with her half-eaten pretzel. "With you gone, Nep, there's nobody to keep Planeptune in check. Nepgear is struggling to get by, and Histoire... well, she's always in over her head."

She righted herself in her seat and continued. "Sorry Nep, but there's still more. I hope this isn't too defeating, but—"

"Defeat?" Neptune interrupted and met IF's eyes with a proud and defiant gaze. "Our battle has not yet begun!"

IF was torn between a laugh and a sigh. As reassuring as it was to see Neptune's spirit, the CPU had a habit of derailing key conversations with lines like that. The brunette sighed and talked over her.

"Planeptune's citizens are anxious," she said. "Your last public appearance was yesterday at the guild, and now everybody is saying you've been killed in action. I can't blame them f—"

The goddess sat bolt upright. "Killed?! Seriously?" she cried.

Noire was quick to restrain her. "Neptune, stop yelling! Close your eyes and your mouth and, uh, breathe calmly or something."

Though reluctantly, Neptune did as she was told. IF was taken aback by the explosive reaction. She would be lying if she claimed to have expected Neptune to show so much concern. Anguish was plain on her face, and her shoulders were trembling. Then again, the CPU had been particularly strained recently.

"Are you good now?" Noire asked again, glancing between the two faces in the room. Neptune gave a nod and a pained smile.

"All's good in my hood," she rhymed. Her eyes immediately went back to IF, asking a silent question: "Anything else?"

IF got straight to the point. "They need to see their goddess," she said. "The longer you're gone, the more people will turn away. If Purple Heart doesn't make an appearance, then Planeptune is in trouble."

The three fell silent and shared a single, worried look.

"But I can't transform!" protested Neptune, glancing at her arm. "I mean, I haven't actually tested it yet, but someone here isn't letting me try." Her eyes narrowed on the only suspect in the room. IF hid her surprise; she had never known Neptune to be confrontational.

Noire met the piercing stare with her own. "Histoire's orders. It's for your own safety," she said sternly, "so you don't end up getting hurt even more than you are now. What if you explode or something, then—"

"Yeah, so, what if HDD me is totally fine? How would you know what'd happen? Not like you've broke your arm before."

"Because you're too weak to stand up as you are now! You'll never prove anything to anyone if you can't stay in HDD long enough to hold a conversation."

"I'll just—"

"Shut up! You're being stupid, you know that? Stupid and reckless! This is for your own good, so why can't you just do as you're told?"

The two glared daggers at each other. The exchange had ended as abruptly as it started. IF was hesitant to step in between the verbal knife fight, but she had to become the mediator else someone reach for their real weapon.

The would-be battle was prevented by a knock on the door, which saved IF from having to offer herself. "Come in," she shouted, making a silent prayer of thanks to whoever had just arrived.

When the identity of the visitor was revealed, IF only had another reason to be glad. "Iffy! You're already here!" came a familiar, bubbly voice. "Oh, and Nep-Nep is awake!"

Neptune's face transformed into a smile as the nurse-in-training entered the room. "Hey, if it isn't Compa! I'm super glad you're here, fluffy dovey pillow of mine. Gimme a hug!"

Compa obliged without question. "I'm so happy you're okay, Nep-Nep!"

Clearly biting back affronted words, Noire rose to her feet with shaking shoulders. "Hi Compa, thanks for coming," she said through gritted teeth. "I have some work to do, so take care of Neptune for me."

With that, the CPU of Lastation stalked out of the room. The remaining three gaped at the empty doorway. Once the sound of footsteps was gone, Neptune came back to life and slumped forward with a weary moan.

"She's so annoying!" complained the goddess, pulling at the sheets. "Agh, I can't believe her. Noire is such an idiot!"

IF scoffed. "Like you can talk, you hypocrite."

Compa, worried and unknowing, looked around and frowned. "Did something happen?" she inquired. She was still holding her friend close, pressing her cleavage to Neptune's uninjured arm.

"Nah, just ignore her," Neptune chirped, the resentment already gone from her voice. "Noire's just being sour and dour. Anyway, you should check out that box o' plenty right over there. That stuff is délicieux." Compa followed Neptune's line of sight to the box, which was getting a lot of attention recently. Food really was a commodity.

"Now now, Nep-Nep." Compa pulled away and held the girl at arm's length. "You can't always think about food. It's not good for your mindset," she chided with eyes that were more amused than they were stern.

"C'mon Compa," Neptune crooned, "I just want one out of twenty-one buns. Noire bought a double baker's dozen, so she was probably planning to stuff herself anyways."

Uninterested in the off-topic banter, IF drummed her fingers on the table. Her mind was somewhere else: The CPU of Lastation had stormed out of her own room. Her sudden exit had left the three puzzled, but the duo over on the bed no longer seemed to be concerned about the incident.

Before she could wonder about where Noire had gone, something was shoved in her face. "You too, Iffy!" Compa smiled, holding out another bread. "I know you skipped breakfast today, so you need to eat."

IF leaned back so she could see around the bread-shaped blur. "Um, no, I'm..." Compa was staring her down with a twinkle in her eye. "Er. Th-thanks," she muttered lamely, taking the offering without further complaint. Satisfied, the pseudo nurse nodded and giggled into her hand.

Neptune started to scoot closer to Compa. "I'm actually sorta nervous about being here," she said, unusually straight-faced. "In Noire's room, I mean. She could get away with anything, you know."

"A-anything? I don't think..." IF's voice trailed away. A provocative scenario started to develop in her mind's eye, and she shook her head to erase the image before it took flight. "That may be true, but nothing will happen. Lady Noire is..." she faltered, searching for the right word. "She doesn't seem like the type to take advantage of you like that."

"Oh, she totally is," Neptune made an indignant face. "Don't believe me? You owe me a pudding for every eggplant she feeds me, every paper she makes me sign..." The list went on and on, but IF soon stopped listening. At the mention of paperwork, the brunette already knew that her imagination had taken her in the wrong direction.

Words flowed easily between the three of them. They were long-time friends. For hours at a time, several days a week, the trio came together with some excuse in mind: work, celebration, and leisure, though the last two were becoming increasingly rare as the weeks went by. Right now, everything was okay: Neptune led the conversation every which way, and Compa went with the flow while IF followed at a more rational pace.

IF's thoughts eventually shifted from her accumulating list of tasks, and she started to laugh alongside her friends at their dumb jokes and light-hearted chatter. That was why she loved these two. She considered them her best friends for good reason. In her life of work and stress, they were her compass and pocket mirror. Whenever she got lost, one or both would show her the way home. Whenever she got lost, they would help her to remember who she really was.

Wings sprouted from her heart and threatened to escape, beating their plumage against her chest. The sapid conversation worked wonders for her mental fatigue; her shoulders sank, and smiles formed more easily on her lips. She was finally able to relax for the first time in a long time. Work completely vanquished from her thoughts, IF breathed in through her nose and out through her mouth. Air rushed from her lungs and left a content, satisfying sensation.

Casual, mindless, idle chitchat was a good thing now and then. Just as with playing a game, it was important to take a break from real life every once in a while. IF spared one last glance at the empty seat at the foot of the bed—Noire's—before giving her undivided attention to Compa, who was telling some story. Only a few more hours remained in the day, so she planned to enjoy them and end the day on a good note.

 _ **Descent**_

Behind the sealed door in Histoire's office was a steep stairwell that extended far, far below the surface of Planeptune. The walls were smooth and not close together. The steps, made of the same tile as the walls, were visible even in the absolute darkness; a thin strip of glowing metal highlighted every second tread. Histoire felt the air become cooler as she descended the tunnel.

At the end of the passage, the stairs leveled and the darkness gave way to a faint bluish light. The corridor led into a cavernous room which was at least five stories tall. In the center of the room stood a huge crystal, pivoting slowly on a pedestal: the Sharicite. It shone with a diminished white light—dim, but permeating nonetheless. Its power could be felt throughout the entire room.

Here, no more than a meter off the ground, Histoire was reminded of her diminutive size. She felt very small in the presence of the Sharicite, but she floated closer and let its influence wash over her. Here, the atmosphere was immersive; it surrounded her, not uncomfortably, in a way that could only be described as mystical. The first time she had discovered this place, she had gotten lost for days. Even now, being near the heart of the city sent a chill down her spine.

She laid a hand on the surface of the crystal and closed her eyes. Her tome moved in synchronization with the rotation of the core. Literally powering the entire city, it gave off an unwavering, minimal level of energy. The aura of the Sharicite was as thin as a razor, a far cry from the heights it reached a decade ago, yet still present.

A muted hum emanated from the stone, but the sound disappeared when she removed her hand. She pulled away and watched the Sharicite spin: It was a perfect symmetrical prism.

It took about a minute for the core to make a full rotation. The pages of her magic book fluttered quietly. The strength of the Sharicite did not fade as she turned away.

Histoire shut her eyes and breathed deeply, giving full navigational control to her tome. On its own, at a leisurely pace, the book carried her to the far wall.

Shelves circled the room all the way around, and they were filled from top to bottom with texts, both written and electronic. This room was the most expansive and impressive library in Gamindustri—it was an arcane archive unlike any other. It filled Histoire with pride to say that she was the caretaker of this place.

The tome took her to a section she had yet to search. It was not without a purpose that she opened the backdoor in her office. Although she commonly dwelled in the library to read and let the hours dwindle away, she did not have the luxury of time at this moment. Planeptune was in a state of chaos, and its CPUs were in danger. The only solution to this dilemma was currently on a six-month vacation in another country.

With a reinvigorated sense of purpose, Histoire gathered all existing data on the power of the Sharicite and its wielders, the CPUs. She pulled books from shelves and discs from storage compartments. These, she dropped off on a simple wooden desk against the wall. The polished brown table would have looked out of place on the silvery, high-tech background if not for the books lining adjacent shelves.

She would start her research with the electronics, as they were less in number. However, one would be mistaken to assume there were a lot of books. While it was true that the library contained a wealth of information, the Sharicite was something of an obscure subject. In total, she had only been able to find about twenty texts on the subject—most compiled by past CPUs and their Oracles—which equaled over sixty hours of reading.

Two hours in, she placed the last disc back in its case. Her research had not borne any fruit, but it had uncovered some intriguing tidbits. On a few of the digital texts, there had been mentions of an ancient CPU of unknown origin who ruled with both personalities side by side. It seemed that there was a process which allowed the CPU to split, resulting in two separate individualities: the human form and the HDD form.

Many questions arose when Histoire reread the passages to make sure that she had not misunderstood. If the divergence of mortal and immortal form were truly possible, it would solve almost every problem Histoire had at the moment. Yet, after reading the passage, she was beginning to doubt the possibility of such a thing.

She wanted to know if the human form would retain its link to the Sharicite and, consequentially, its immortality. She wanted to know if the process was irreversible or if the two forms could somehow merge back into one. She wanted to know the process, what had happened the ancient CPU, and how they met their end, whether they passed away peacefully or for other reasons.

Histoire gulped as she thumbed the cover of the first of twenty hard-cover books. A feeling—a prescience—told her that salvation was hidden somewhere between these gilded pages. These books had not been opened since before her time. The pages were undusted only because the library was kept tidy even after years of disuse.

If only she had taken the time to research this subject before, then they could have weathered the storm. For almost three years now, the downhill slant of Planeptune's graph had presaged rising tensions and a decline in the prosperity of the city. The stress and tedium of work had narrowed Histoire's focus and caused her to neglect her research. Between balancing societal issues and locking herself away to read, it was the former that took priority.

Straightening her back and taking a few deep breaths, Histoire let go of the book and placed both hands on the pages of her tome. She cleared her mind, silencing her worries and regrets. "Whatever happens, happens," or so she told herself.

As she was reaching again for the book, she sensed something in her tome and stopped. Underneath her fingers, the page was shining with a mana-infused blue light. Her lexicon, showing an inanimate consciousness, was giving her a suggestion.

Immediately recognizing the spell and intention conveyed by the book, Histoire laughed softly to herself. It took only a few seconds to endorse the spell and establish a link between herself and the person she wished to contact.

"Hello, Kei? No, nothing urgent, but I believe I may have gotten a lead on a solution. Well, I will need three days for further research, but let us chat for a bit. Listen to this..."

 _ **Descent**_

Nepgear found herself running as she approached the Basilicom. Cognizant of her tendencies to develop tunnel vision, she shook her head and forced herself to slow down. She had attracted the attention of more than a few passersby; a CPU Candidate running around through the streets of a nation other than their own was not an everyday occurrence.

"Sis..." she breathed and bit her lip. It was no mystery why she was in a hurry.

Even with the twins' help, the search for Uni had yielded no results. Not a single trace of the missing girl had been found. By the time the sun had set, the seekers had little faith that Uni would turn up, and the impromptu search party disbanded with the intention of resuming the very next day.

The dual CPU Candidates had gone home earlier. Their older sister had been reluctant to even let them participate in the search, but they had somehow persuaded her to allow them until six of the clock to look around with Nepgear.

Stubborn as she was, Ram had suggested to her sister and foreign friend that they disregard the time restriction. Rom, the more convincing negotiator of the twins, quelled her sister's rebellious notion. Her pink look-alike surrendered, tail between her legs, as soon as Rom mentioned Blanc's characteristic temper.

Now, alone and without pressing matters to attend to, Nepgear was faced with the choice of returning to Planeptune or remaining in Lastation. While a voice in the back of her head gave rational evidence to support the first option, another voice—louder and more clear than the other—chanted her sister's name. Needless to say, Nepgear listened to the louder voice.

Though business-centric, Lastation had its share of boutiques and cake shops. Nepgear stopped by several and picked up a variety of desserts and sweets. Her purse nowhere near as heavy as it had been earlier, Nepgear set off for her destination with shopping bags in hand.

The wide doors of the Basilicom swung inwards and invited Nepgear inside. After inquiring her name and business, the gray-robed worker at the reception desk nodded and rose to his feet, giving a formal welcome. He lost interest almost immediately and returned his attention to the book on his lap.

"Through that door, then take the elevator to floor three," he said without looking at her. "Lady Black Heart's room is the second-to-last door on the left."

The receptionist did not look up again, but Nepgear smiled and thanked him nonetheless. She followed the directions and, sure enough, saw an open door at the end of the hallway. Thinking that her footsteps would alert Neptune of her arrival, she entered the room without hesitation.

"Neptune?" Her voice disturbed the silence. "Um. Is anyone here?" she asked, taking another step into the room before freezing in place. She took a quick look around and realized why no one responded to her.

Decorative guns—real and most likely functional—adorned the walls. An assortment of military collectibles furnished the room, including maps, model tanks, and a gray stuffed rabbit with an eyepatch and a camoflauge-patterned beret. Undoubtedly, a few personal keepsakes were hidden among the collection. The furniture and bedsheets added a feminine touch to the bedroom themed after a gunner's armory.

Nepgear backed out of the room and pulled the door shut; it closed with a muted click. Warmth heated her cheeks, though she could not tell if her face was pale or pink. She placed a hand over her heart and let out a shaky breath.

Absentminded, she had passed the second-to-last door and instead entered the open door that led to Uni's room. To walk into the room of a missing person looking for her sister... She did not want to repeat that mistake ever again. Nepgear gulped and gently slapped her cheeks. "Silly me."

In the next room over, the Candidate found her older sister engrossed in a handheld game, quietly manipulating the control stick. Neptune heard the girl walk in, and her head snapped up. A wide smile formed on her face when she recognized the face in the doorway.

"Heeey, g'morning Nep Jr.! I must be popular. Third visitor in an hour?" She held the black, oval-shaped device up with one hand. "Oh, c'mere, you gotta see this. Check it out!"

Ever the obedient girl, Nepgear scurried over and set her baggage down by the side of the bed before sitting down close to her older sister. "Good morning, Neptune," she replied automatically, but then she frowned and tilted her head. "But... It isn't morning."

Neptune stopped with words on the tip of her tongue. "What, really?" she said after a moment. "It's not?"

Nodding, the younger girl looked to the window; blackout curtains, pulled across the window, blocked the view of the outside. Nepgear hurried over and pulled the curtains aside to reveal the city of Lastation in all of its nocturnal glory. Save for bubbles of light from streetlamps and windows in the distance, complete darkness shrouded the city.

Nepgear turned, and the sisters locked eyes. One looked away, confused, and laughed. "Oh, well, would you look at that! Time really flies when you're having fun! I've just been playing with this thing all day, this Lastation Portobello thingie that Noire made. Hey, come here and I'll let you have a try."

Again, Nepgear paused and hesitated before giving an answer. "The Lastation Portable," she corrected, "is Uni's console. She finished it just before... you know. Her disappearance. We were play together..."

"Oh." Making a strangled noise, Neptune blew out through her teeth. "Silly me. Totally forgot that Uni did the handhelds. Just, uh, you know how similar they are, tsun-tsun and sister-sister? I get them mixed up sometimes. Er, my bad."

The CPU rarely made scatterbrained mistakes. Unsettled by her sister's absentmindedness, Nepgear shook her head and sat down on the bed. "It's okay. You don't need to justify anything." She hid her worries and inched closer to Neptune. "What game are you playing? Is it multiplayer? Can I join? Oh, and how's your shoulder?" She reached across her sister's body to lay a gentle hand on the sling. The material was stiff and rough to the touch.

"Whoa there, hold your horsebirds! Don't just ask a hundred and one questions out of nowhere, snow way I can answer them all at once. Here, gimme a hug first, then we'll see about that multiplayer."

Nepgear spent several minutes hugging and gushing over her older sister. Not at all displeased by the prolonged show of affection, the goddess grinned and took everything in stride. Neptune even pretended not to notice her sister's lips grazing her neck and face when the girl nuzzled her like the giant stuffed rabbit in their room had taken her place.

The younger girl showed no sign of letting go anytime soon. Neptune, looking increasingly uncomfortable at the rising level of intimacy in her sister's touch, fidgeted and cast about for an excuse. "Say, what's in that bag you were carrying? Did ya go shopping?" she asked.

The diversion worked, and Nepgear pulled away with eyes wide. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot..." She trailed off as she leaned down to grab the bag. "I picked these up for you. I hope you like them."

At the sight of more food, Neptune's eyebrows shot upwards. "Whoa, all for me?" Her eyes followed Nepgear's hand as it moved back and forth from the bag to the bedside table, laying out an array of boxed cakes, cookies, and who knew what else. "Am I lucky to have a sister so devoted and kind! Your mortally wounded older sister gives you her dearest thanks."

Judging from the terrified expression that shadowed the Candidate's face, the joke had tapped a sensitive subject. Terror gave way to relief once Nepgear realized her sibling's remark was only in jest. The younger CPU smiled and situated herself next to her sister. "Can I stay here a while, Neptune? So much has been happening, and we haven't been able to spend much time with each other."

Neptune nodded her approval and shifted to the side to give her younger sister space to sit. The width of the bed easily accommodated the both of them, and it could probably fit one or two more.

Being closest to the confections, Nepgear took it upon herself to feed her sister. "Here, Neptune, eat this one."

Neptune opened her mouth to accept the bite of shortcake. The sweet, strawberry-infused taste drew out a purr of enjoyment from the goddess. "Wow, my tastebuds are all like _très bien_ right now. Good choice, m'dear, you get an extra move."

Glowing from the praise, Nepgear habitually ate the rest of the cake off the fork before cutting another piece for her sister. This sort of closeness was arguably standard fare between sisters, though many would assume from word of mouth—or firsthand knowledge, in the case of a few—that Nepgear felt a different kind of affinity for the CPU of Planeptune. Fortunately, Neptune did not seem to mind sharing utensils, and the pair enjoyed the desserts for a good amount of time.

After a couple minutes of mindless chatter, Nepgear put her fork down and remembered the time and place. She looked around as if the owner of the room would appear out of thin air. "Is Noire not here? I thought she'd be with you."

Neptune's eyebrows came together for a brief moment before her expression went back to normal. She hummed and shrugged, "I dunno. She's probably questing or developing or something, the busy bee, the workaholic." She added the last word in a scoff. The strict work regime of Lastation was the tried, true, and go-to explanation for Noire's absence; even under these special circumstances, the local goddess could not seem to slow her pace.

"That's too bad," the Candidate nodded, her lips a thin, thoughtful line. "I-if she can't keep you company all the time... Maybe I shoul—"

"Nope, no way! _C'est n'importe quoi_!" Neptune cut her off, crossing her hands in front of her chest. "We can't have that, and you know it." She made a stern face and looked directly at the younger girl. "We can't afford to leave Planeptune alone right now. I'm stuck here, want to or not, but you can go anywhere."

"But what about you?" pleaded Nepgear, gripping her sister's arm. "I can still be helpful. I just want to spend more time with you!"

Neptune refused to give in. "Think of the children! Oh, and Histy! Can you imagine how hard it'd be for her if you stopped working too?

"You're my sister and my CPU Candidate," the goddess continued after taking a breath, "and when I can't live up to my job as a CPU, your job is to take over in my place. I don't just mean replace me when my term is done and gone, I mean that you need to take over whenever I'm not cutting it! You get me?"

The speaker delivered the words with passion and dignity that was alien of her usual behavior. Nepgear sat back in her seat looking thoroughly chastised. She rubbed her wrist and mumbled something that did not reach Neptune's ears. "So..."

Neptune's shoulders deflated when she sat the effects of her speech. As if she had not meant to work herself up, she interjected and stumbled over a few syllables. "Er, my bad, Nep Jr. I didn't mean to be pushy, but we're CPUs, you know. We have to know what comes first." She reached out and placed a hand on top of Nepgear's head, rustling her hair gentle. "Come on, don't make me feel like I just kicked your puppy. You can visit me anytime, just not all the time."

Without words, Nepgear nodded and leaned ever so slightly on Neptune, whose worry-creased frown melted. The CPU began singing in a soft, gentle, yet broken and off-key voice. "Someday, I'll come, back to our big ol' city, and you're gonna be waitin' there for me. Hmm hm, hmm hm..."

For nearly a minute, Neptune hummed to the same tune and continued to pat Nepgear's hair. Despite the cracks in the older girl's voice, Nepgear smiled and almost giggled. To see Neptune acting normally, for the most part, was a huge relief. The Candidate closed her eyes and leaned against the small body of her sister to savor the moment. At times like these, she most felt the presence of Purple Heart—even though the deity was much, much farther away than Neptune of Planeptune was at this moment.


End file.
